Have you ever wondered how easy it might have been to rob a bank in the earlier half of the 20th century? There were no cameras, silent alarms, rising safety screens on teller windows, federal crime databases or computerized vaults. They couldn’t dust for fingerprints, or trace phone calls back then. Before the digital age, would-be criminals had a lot more to gain from robbing banks as well, as vaults tended to contain much more cash than they do today. Unless you’re a Wall Street insider, robbing banks just isn’t worth it anymore. In fact, this is true of many crimes.
Despite the media’s obsession with depicting and psychoanalyzing violent criminals, all crime has been steadily declining over the past several decades. I suspect this trend is linked to technological advances that have made breaking the law more difficult to get away with. Our very own U campus is the perfect case study for examining how national crime has decreased as a result of improved law enforcement technology, and more effective policies.
1993 was the first year in 21 years that campus crime fell at the U. However, crime reporting on college campuses wasn’t mandatory until the Campus Security Act was passed in 1990, so you have to wonder how accurate the statistics were before that time. What we do know is that, in 1993, the number of reported crimes per 1,000 students was 25.5, and by 2012, that number had fallen to around 21.55. This is a significant decrease, especially when you consider that reporting methods improved considerably over that time period.
One of the main deterrents of crime, on campus and in general, is surveillance. If someone knows they are being watched, they are far less likely to do something illegal. Security cameras have become a much more common feature of the U’s campus in the past decade. Most buildings on campus are equipped with cameras, as are parking lots and garages. This trend mirrors an increase in surveillance cameras nationwide. They are cropping up more and more on street corners, public parking areas and commercial buildings, making it even easier to identify and track down suspected criminals.
While the presence of cameras seems to make most would-be criminals think twice before breaking the law, it doesn’t guarantee that a perp will be found and brought to justice. One of the common complaints regarding the U’s cameras, specifically those found in parking garages, is that they are not of a high enough quality. For instance, last year when a female student was the victim of a hit and run in the parking garage, a security guard was able to review footage of the crime, but he could not make out the offending driver’s license plate number.
Despite some criticism about the quality and quantity of cameras on campus, they have definitely made it easier to catch criminals who are dumb enough to be caught on tape. For example, when a violin was stolen from Dumke Recital Hall last summer, the crime was recorded and a video of the thief quickly began circulating the internet. Within a few days, the bandit was apprehended and the violin was returned to its rightful owner.
An additional set of tools employed by campus law enforcement officials in recent years has focused on involving the community in order to prevent and combat crime. Timely Warning Notifications are warnings issued to the campus community whenever a crime presents a serious threat to U students or employees. If a crime is determined to present a significant and immediate threat, warnings containing info on the incident and a description, or picture of the suspect are sent out via texts, emails, social media alerts, electronic bulletin boards and university websites. The amount of coordination and communication between campus police and the public has made it harder for criminals to simply disappear into the crowd. Many times, before the perp even has a chance to flee campus, everyone in the community is alerted to what they’ve done and what they look like.
There is even a website, called CrimeReports.com, that allows campus law enforcement agencies to report crime to the public in real time. The site displays a map of campus with little flags indicating recent criminal activity. For sex-related offenses, the flags also include a picture of the suspect.
Along with a greater degree of public disclosure of criminal activity, recent decades have also ushered in an increase in the number of police patrolling the streets. In 1993, the U boasted a police force of 35 officers. Today, the campus security staff alone, which only plays a supporting role to the university police, employs over 65 people. Police patrol our campus streets 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and the campus police hotline is always open. Even so, university police warn students not to feel overly confident with campus security. It can cause you to let your guard down, making you more likely to be the target of crime.
A few tips that the campus police offer students who are concerned about being a victim of campus crime are mostly common sense. Don’t leave valuables lying around unattended, don’t carry cash whenever possible, and try not to walk alone at night or through shady areas of campus. If you are ever worried about walking alone, you can call the campus police at 801-585-2677 and they will give you an escort. They can also help you out if you ever lose your backpack, purse, keys or self on campus.
In an age where the media relentlessly bombards us with stories of school shootings, racially-motivated massacres and other heinous acts of violence, it is easy to forget that we are living during a time of unprecedented peace and security. While it is still important to be wary of miscreants, and to be aware of the threats they may pose to one’s self and one’s property, it is also important to put crime in a historical context so that we can appreciate the relative safety afforded us by modern technology and effective policies. Especially on our beloved university campus.