UCPD NEWS
Campus Safety (Permanent link to Campus-wide Memo Here)
Memo to campus community dated September 13, 2007
To the campus community:
While the Berkeley campus and surrounding areas are generally as safe as other urban areas, the surge over the past two weeks in incidents of robbery, some involving weapons, was unusual. Our department and the City of Berkeley police are aware of the problem and are taking extra measures in response. These include increased uniformed and plain-clothes patrols, as well as coordination with other local agencies to analyze the trends.
There have been nine robberies between September 1 and September 10 on and around the Berkeley campus. Suspects have been arrested in four of the nine cases.
Ten of the twenty-two robberies that have occurred in 2007 in our jurisdiction have been solved. Overall, 65% of the violent crimes on and around the campus have been cleared, which is well over the national average (46% in 2005). Nevertheless, we understand that these crimes have raised concerns about safety. We share these concerns and have been working to address them.
The robbery that occurred on campus near Haviland Hall on Monday evening, September 10 caused the most reaction from our community. In that case, the victim was stuck by several pellets fired from a bb gun. The victim was also punched and kicked after initially resisting the robbery attempt. The University Police Department was called and advised that there was a robbery in progress and that shots were fired and that the victim may be injured. Our officers arrived very soon after the call, saw the two juvenile suspects and pursued them. One was caught quickly. Although the other suspect eluded officers for nearly 90 minutes; he was located and apprehended and found to be in possession of the bb gun. During the search for the second suspect, our officers asked people in the area to 'shelter in place' in their offices or residences.
The arrests on Monday evening led to other cases being closed, and detectives from the City of Berkeley and the University Police departments are following up on other leads. In the meantime, you can do the following to maximize your safety. (See related links for more detailed information.)
Use personal crime prevention strategies:
* Be cautious and aware of your surroundings at all times, especially
at night. If you are on the campus late in the evening and you are
unable to use UCPD's Night Safety Services, try to walk with others on
well-lit and well-traveled routes (see them on the Night Safety Map at
http://police.berkeley.edu/PDFs/NightMap.pdf).
* Do not wear earphones or talk on the phone when walking at night.
* Do not carry your laptop in an obvious laptop case. Using a regular
backpack or book-bag reduces the ability of criminals to pick you as a
target. Load tracking software, such as Computrace, onto your system
to assist with recovering your property if it is stolen. Record the
make, model and serial number of your laptop in a secure location.
Use Night Safety Services
UCPD offers a few different ways to ensure the safety of you and your
belongings when you're leaving campus late at night. Choose one of the
following ways of getting home safely:
* BearWALK
Call (510) 642-WALK (9255) after dusk and before 1:45am, 15 minutes before you need pick up. and a UCPD Community Service Officer (CSO) will meet you and walk with you to your destination within a four to five block radius of the campus. CSO's are uniformed, trained, and carry a police radio. Experience shows that CSO presence makes a difference. Program boundaries are:
Cedar (N)
Prospect/Highland Place (E)
Parker (S), and
Shattuck (W.)
* Night Safety Shuttles
Call (510) 642-WALK to find out when the next shuttle stops near you. Use the Night Safety Shuttle to travel to BART or the southside
residence halls. The Ride To-Your-Door lines allow you to ride all the
way home within service area boundaries.
* Owl Service
After 3am, UCPD offers van pick up and drop off service from door to door. Call (510) 642-6760 before 5:45am.
Report Suspicious Activity
Immediately report any suspicious individuals or activities to the University Police at 642-6760. As with any emergency situation, call 9-1-1 from any campus phone to reach the University police Department. Program the University police emergency number into your cell phone, as well: (510) 642-3333. This number is treated the same as a call to
911.
Stay informed
You can review detailed information about the recent incidents at our Crime Alerts 2007 archive.
* ST&AR The University of California Police Department communicates crime alerts to the community via the ST&AR (Safety, Threats & Alerts Report) program, powered by the same technology employed by the BBC, the Wall Street Journal and CNN. ST&AR will allow you to receive up-to-the-minute alerts and information relative to your safety. The program is small and will 'live' in the system tray of your Windows-based computer as a 7-pointed star at right-end of your 'Start' toolbar; a small window pops up when an alert is sent out.
* UC Police News List Serve Members of our community who do not use Windows-based systems can subscribe to a list-serve, 'ucb_police_news,' that will email crime alerts to you.
You can access ST&AR or information about subscribing to the email alert system from our website: http://police.berkeley.edu; select the Safety Information link.
* Safety Counts The annual publication Safety Counts will be mailed to all faculty, staff and students as usual near the end of September; please refer to it for crime prevention strategies, current crime statistics, emergency preparedness, and other safety resources. You can view Safety Counts online at: http://police.berkeley.edu
We are aware that the campus community is concerned about these recent events, and we share your concerns. If you want to contact us, you can email us at police@berkeley.edu or call the Crime Prevention Unit at (510) 642-9101.
Victoria L. Harrison
Associate Vice Chancellor, Public Safety
and Chief of Police
Related Links
Other News:
UCPD NOW HIRING CSOs Make a difference with a job as Community Service Officer (CSO). Flexible hours. Now starting at $11.90/hr. Read More
Know your Emergency Telephone Numbers:
Key Phone Numbers for Safety
UCPD, 1 Sproul Hall
Emergency Telephone Number via Campus Phone - 911
Emergency Telephone Number via Cell Phone – (510) 642-3333
Non-Emergencies Telephone Number - (510) 642-6760
NOTE: CALLING 911 FROM YOUR CELL PHONE ON CAMPUS CONNECTS TO CALIFORNIA HIGHWAY PATROL. USE THE CAMPUS NUMBERS ABOVE OR THE CODE BLUE PHONES FOR A DIRECT LINE TO UCPD.
Berkeley Police Department, 2100 Martin Luther King Jr. Way
Emergency Telephone Number: 911
Emergency Telephone Number via Cell Phone - (510) 981-5911
Non-Emergency Telephone Number - (510) 981-5900
Explore the Site for More Safety Info:
Thank you for visiting police.berkeley.edu. UCPD encourages everyone to utilize our safety programs and services. Take a minute to look over our campus safety guidelines and learn the best ways to protect your vehicle, your belongings and yourself on campus.
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