Report: On-campus crime down 40 percent from '96 high

The University and its surrounding neighborhood have become safer in recent years as crime levels have continuously fallen from a landmark high in 1996.

According to the University Department of Public Safety, reported crime dropped 14 percent since 2002, and 40 percent since 1996.

University officials attribute the constant decline in crime rates to an increased police presence, the use of closed-circuit television cameras on campus, a tightening of University alcohol policy and an improved relationship between the Penn Police, on-campus security and the Philadelphia Police.

However, crime rates have not dropped in every category since 2002. Simple assaults, robberies and sex offenses increased slightly last year, but an enormous decrease in theft dropped the overall rate significantly.

Experts and police officials attribute the rise in sex offenses not to an increased number of crimes committed, but to an increase in the number of crimes reported.

"People feel safer to report it, more educated as to what they can report," Vice President for Public Safety Maureen Rush said. She added that sexual offenses were often perpetrated by acquaintances, and that people are becoming more aware that these are still offenses.

The benchmark year for crime in the University area came in 1996, when police officials recognized student safety was not being ensured.

1996 "is when it came to a head. The University realized it had to make major shifts" in policy, Rush said.

The "time period of '95-'96 is a time we don't want to go back to," Penn Chief of Police Tom Rambo added.

One of the major changes in policy was a greater devotion of resources to crime analysis.

"Detectives follow up" on crimes, Rambo said. "They interview people, check with various agencies ... we bring other people in."

These analyses, he said, lead to identification of any areas that were particularly blighted by crime. Also, police are able to adjust their tactics according to trend data. For example, official records are kept of times of day and times of year during which crimes are most often committed.

"Evening deployment is different from the morning," Rambo said. "The visibility of uniformed patrols is certainly a deterrent on crime."

By far the most common crime is theft, with 440 reported incidents in 2003, compared to 710 in 1996. Students and other University affiliates are often the targets of such crimes, which frequently occur indoors.

To counteract theft, police have coordinated services with building administrators to assign officers or Allied Security guards to these sites.

"Thefts indoors are always difficult," Rambo said. "We've developed relationships with people at each of these facilities ... when we have a problem with one building, we don't leave it at that building."

The CCTV cameras that are located on the corner of several streets have been particularly useful for apprehension of criminals, Rush said. But they also serve as a type of deterrent.

"Bad guys know there's CCTV coverage in the area," Rush said. "They never know when cameras are watching them."

Officials noted that though the crime trend has turned downward in recent years, spikes in crime levels will always occur, especially during times of economic decline. The beginning of the school year also often marks a sudden rise in reported incidents.

"September is going to be the most challenging month" due to incoming freshmen, Rush said. She explained that the difficulties of adjusting both to college life and being in a new urban area could lead to new students becoming victims of crime.

Howard Clery -- co-founder of Security on Campus, a campus crime watchdog group -- called alcohol a prime cause of violent crime among students. He said intoxicated students are both more likely to commit assault and to become victims of crimes.

"There was amazing alcohol usage" among students in 1996, Rush said. "Many initiatives were instituted. ... There is a definite correlation between victims of violent crime and alcohol" use.

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