Crime reported inaccurately; students concerned
Anthony Cesarini
Issue date: 1/20/06 Section: News
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The University was featured in a Philadelphia Inquirer article that provided an in-depth look into alleged improper crime reporting by local universities under the Clery Act.
The Inquirer article ("On campus, creating an illusion by crime data," The Philadelphia Inquirer, Jan. 15) began focusing on the low number of crimes that had been reported by public safety at West Chester University and later moved to target Drexel, which was referred to as another "anomalous island of relative safety in the inner city."
Drexel was compared to the University of Pennsylvania, who, in its 2004 Clery Act reports, had acknowledged eight campus sexual assaults, 65 robberies and 49 burglaries. In contrast, Drexel had reported only one sexual assault, two robberies, and 27 burglaries.
The Inquirer found eight 2004 robberies that involved Drexel students and had not been filed in the Clery report. These incidents had occurred two blocks from campus.
One robbery involved a Drexel student which was first accosted near 30th Street Station and then chased onto campus and was later beaten and robbed. After talking with The Inquirer about this incident, Bernard Gollotti, Senior Associate Vice President for Public Safety, purportedly assigned an investigator to look into the matter. This and another attack that occurred on a sidewalk bordering campus were later added to the 2004 filing.
Much of the discrepancy between Penn and Drexel is in two different takes on the Clery Act. Penn reports all crimes that occur in its patrol area, which extends past the campus boundary. The Clery Act does not require this. On the other hand, Drexel follows a strict interpretation of the Clery Act, which specifically states that crimes occurring "on campus, in or on noncampus buildings or property, and on public property" must be included in the report. The required reporting boundary is referred to as the "reasonably contiguous geographic area of the institution." Locales that are often visited by students do not need to be included if they are not controlled by the University. Therefore, Drexel does not report most crimes that occur on property outside the campus boundary.
The Inquirer article ("On campus, creating an illusion by crime data," The Philadelphia Inquirer, Jan. 15) began focusing on the low number of crimes that had been reported by public safety at West Chester University and later moved to target Drexel, which was referred to as another "anomalous island of relative safety in the inner city."
Drexel was compared to the University of Pennsylvania, who, in its 2004 Clery Act reports, had acknowledged eight campus sexual assaults, 65 robberies and 49 burglaries. In contrast, Drexel had reported only one sexual assault, two robberies, and 27 burglaries.
The Inquirer found eight 2004 robberies that involved Drexel students and had not been filed in the Clery report. These incidents had occurred two blocks from campus.
One robbery involved a Drexel student which was first accosted near 30th Street Station and then chased onto campus and was later beaten and robbed. After talking with The Inquirer about this incident, Bernard Gollotti, Senior Associate Vice President for Public Safety, purportedly assigned an investigator to look into the matter. This and another attack that occurred on a sidewalk bordering campus were later added to the 2004 filing.
Much of the discrepancy between Penn and Drexel is in two different takes on the Clery Act. Penn reports all crimes that occur in its patrol area, which extends past the campus boundary. The Clery Act does not require this. On the other hand, Drexel follows a strict interpretation of the Clery Act, which specifically states that crimes occurring "on campus, in or on noncampus buildings or property, and on public property" must be included in the report. The required reporting boundary is referred to as the "reasonably contiguous geographic area of the institution." Locales that are often visited by students do not need to be included if they are not controlled by the University. Therefore, Drexel does not report most crimes that occur on property outside the campus boundary.
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jsctt488
jsctt488
posted 1/20/06 @ 10:27 AM EST
for students looking for more accurate crime statistics go to http://www.cml.upenn.edu/nis/ and click on the CrimeBase application. it may take a a little time to learn it, but it's a very good tool. (Continued…)
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