Crime rate slips down at University
But thieves hit students
at least once while here
By Debbie Howlett
Of the Emerald
Crime at major colleges and
universities around the nation
is up almost 150 percent, says
Sgt, Rick Allison of the Eugene
Police Department But at this
University. Allison says he is
observing a decline
Even though crime may be
on a downward trend, Allison
and Richard Tanner, head of
the University's public safety
office, agree and stress that
burglaries, theft, assault and
violent crimes still do happen
"The average student," Alli
son says, "if he is at the
University four years, will be
victimized at least once,
usually twice "
The way students can pro
tect themselves is to be aware
of the possibility of theft and
their own responsibilities
"Number one, students
have to be aware and take re
sponsibility for their own
property," Tanner says
Tanner explains that naivete
and carelessness contribute
to the incidence of crime on
campus and in the campus
area He points to an example
of one student who left an ex
pensive watch outside of the
handball courts in Esslinger
Hall while he was inside play
ing "He was amazed
someone stole it," Tanner
says
Allison stresses students
play as big a role in crime
prevention as the campus
security and the Eugene
police department
"Students pay a tremen
dous amount of money to go to
school here and they have the
right to get an education free
from the criminal element —
that's why we re here," Allison
says "But it's a team effort
unless we get cooperation, an
intricate part is missing "
The population base at the
University is 20,000, which
makes the campus and sur
rounding areas a target for
crime. Tanner adds
The types of crime that oc
cur on campus range from
minor thefts to violent crimes
such as assault and rape Alli
son says violent crimes are
declining, but there has been a
57 percent increase in bicycle
theft. Of all crimes at the
University, burglary is growing
the fastest, he adds
Allison says only one
attempted rape on campus
was reported last year and that
no "finalized" rapes were
reported The year before,
nine rapes or attempted rapes
were reported on campus
Allison adds he has spoken
with convicted rajpists who
have told him they come to the
campus "looking,” primarily
because of the number of
women on campus
Allison says a women should
look at herself and be aware of
"her own visible signals " The
manner in which a woman
carries herself may make her
more susceptible to attack
"If a woman displays con
fidence and self assurance, it
increases the odds of not be
Emerald Photo
With bike thefts increasing over 57 percent in the last year, students need to be on guard against
would-be theives, according to Sgt. Rick Allison of the Eugene Police Department.
ing raped," he says
Decreasing susceptibility to
attack is one thing Allison
stresses In the instance of
rape, he says there are several
ways to better the odds. Travel
routes and time of day should
be a concern For example, if a
woman has a night class, he
suggests staying away from
dark, brushy areas since lights
and people will discourage
attackers, Allison says
Other protective measures
are sprays (some useful, some
not, according to Allison), es
cort services provided by dif
ferent campus groups, emer
gency call boxes located
around campus and noise.
According to Allison, the
best thing to do in case of
attack is to yell fire and keep
yelling A call of “rape” fright
ens people rather than gaining
their assistance, he notes
With the increase in burglary
and theft comes a clear
message from Allison and
Tanner — students need to
take responsibility to decrease
the chance they will get vic
timized
“There is a terrible amount
of theft in the library and dorm
rooms — and it's not forced
entry,” Tanner says
Tanner notes a lot of
students are away from
parents and home for the first
time. He adds those students
are not used to worrying about
their security.
“The transition of home and
parents to self-responsibility
has to be impressed on their
minds," Tanner says.
One effort being made to
alleviate those problems is
“Project Be Safe “ Allison
says elected students from re
sidence halls and vice pre
sidents in the Greek organiza
tions are being trained to
“allow them to be aware and
Continued on Page 9
You'll hear...
If you didn't get your jeans from the Buffalo, you got skunked.
Why???
* ^
» T5
We’ve get the brands, styles & selections at incredible low prices starting at justC^ ^ ^
f'hey may be factory seconds, but no one will ever know.
1 V
EUGENE 77 West 11th 342-8495
ALBANY 122 East 1st 926-7355
MEDFORD 36 S Central 772-6200
SALEM Salem Plaza 371-9500
CORVALLIS 312 S.W. 3rd 758-1170