The University of Utah’s Department of Public Safety maintains a daily crime and fire log, detailing reported offenses, locations and case statuses — whether they remain open or have been resolved. According to the department, this log is intended to keep the campus community informed on a more frequent basis, providing details about individual incidents rather than just compiling statistics.
Both simple assault and aggravated assault were seen in January and February. The Chronicle’s September Crime Report defines “simple” versus “aggravated” assaults, along with other common terms such as “criminal mischief” and “disorderly conduct”.
A crime categorized as “other” can include a range of incidents including warrant services, which is defined in the November and December 2024 Crime Report.
A few categories among “other” which appeared more than once for the month of January and February were agency assist, welfare check, community oriented policing and non-criminal civil complaint.
Most Common Locations
During January and February, a total of 587 crimes were reported, with 254 incidents occurring directly on campus — including the upper, middle, central and lower north/south areas. Meanwhile, 249 crimes took place on the Health Campus, which encompasses the University Hospital, Primary Children’s Hospital and the Huntsman Cancer Institute.
This pattern aligns with crime reports from previous months, which have consistently identified the Health Campus as sharing a high proportion of reported crimes.
The primary hubs of criminal activity on campus were Housing and Residential Education, which accounted for 71 reported incidents and Central Campus, where 61 crimes were documented.
Most Common Incidents
As previously noted, a significant portion of crimes occurred within the Health Campus, with the most common offenses including assault (both simple and aggravated) against healthcare workers, drug possession, theft and criminal mischief. Among these, 34 incidents specifically involved assaults on healthcare workers, two of which were aggravated.
This trend reflects a broader national issue. According to John Yang and Claire Mufson of PBS Utah, healthcare workers are five times more likely to experience workplace-related violence, much of which stems from patient-related incidents — including assaults by family members and conflicts between patients.
Additionally, traffic accidents and theft made up the second and third most reported crimes on campus, with a majority of traffic accidents either a hit and run or damage of property, and theft cases either being shoplifting related or bike theft.
Case Status
Of the reported crimes, 467 cases have been closed and are no longer under investigation. Meanwhile, 63 cases remain actively under investigation, a majority of which took place on the Health Campus. Thirty-six have been categorized under other dispositions as outlined in the crime log.
Comparing Trends
January and February saw a notable increase in cases of domestic violence, sexual battery and rape, totaling 17 incidents — a stark contrast to fall and winter 2024, which reported none. Additionally, stalking incidents also rose in early 2025, with seven cases reported, compared to four in September and October and zero in November and December.
However, suspicious circumstances saw a significant decline, dropping from 32 reports in December to 23 in January, and further down to just eight in February.
Other Categories
The category of “agency assist,” listed 39 times in January and 28 times in February, means the incident was initially reported to another agency who contacted the university police to assist. These incidents listed the specific agency being assisted, the vast majority being “police” and “fire/medical.”
A welfare check is defined as a police officer visiting a person’s place of work or home to check on their general welfare. This was listed 12 times in January and four times in February.
Community oriented policing was listed six times in January and two times in February. Locations varied, including central campus, lower north campus, University Student Apartments and off-campus in Salt Lake City.
Community oriented policing is defined as a policing strategy that relies on community involvement and partnerships and police presence in the community to address local crime. This could mean outreach events, such as “Coffee with a Cop.”
A non-criminal civil complaint was listed three times in January and five times in February. The difference between civil and criminal law is that civil law involves private relationships between members, rather than a broader threat to society.
Student Resources
The public safety dashboard is an interactive web page that allows individuals to view different crime statistics on campus.
Additional resources include:
Center for Campus Wellness: 801-581-7776
Crime Victim Advocates: 801-585-2677, crimevictimadvocates@utah.edu
Huntsman Mental Health Institute: 801-583-2500, (988 crisis line available 24/7)
University Counseling Center: 801-581-6826
University Police: 801-585-2677
