CUPD reports general arrests, citations also decreased
With one month of school in the books, the CU Police Department’s crime statistics show a significant drop over the same period last year.
Two numbers stand out over the course of the first month. General arrests and citations fall into one category and “part one” crimes in the other. Part one crimes are more serious offenses. These crimes include grand theft auto, assault, rape and murder. All part one crimes are reported to the FBI.
Since the start of classes on Aug. 27, CUPD Commander Brad Wiesley reported 56 part one crimes. This number is down from 74 crimes in 2006 and 100 in 2005.
General arrests and citations in the past month amount to 138, down from 179 crimes in 2006. Both years are still substantially higher than the 80 reported in 2005.
The most common offenses involving students are petty theft and drug and alcohol violations, Wiesley said.
“Once in a while, we’ll see groups or individuals, typically new to the area, with a particular crime specialty,” Wiesley said. “We’ll have sort of mini crime waves then, until we catch them.”
The most recent wave occurred in August of 2005, Wiesley said. There were 31 bicycles stolen in one month. The individuals responsible for the thefts were apprehended and the trend ceased.
At least one student hasn’t noticed anything different about campus crime this year.
“I haven’t seen any change, personally,” said senior humanities major Greg Nelson. “I guess naturally it would be up because the student population has gone up in the past few years.”
After looking at this semester’s statistics, Nelson said, “I guess people just aren’t extreme enough anymore.”
Contact Campus Press Staff Writer Andrew Frankel at Andrew.frankel@colorado.edu
