Crime on campus, whether it be theft or homicide, is a reality that colleges and universities have to be aware of and prepared for. Looking at the recently issued Clery Report, it appears that Missouri Western has a handle on crime.

The Clery Report is a yearly report disclosing crime statistics and information about college and universities for the prior three years. The report came out of the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act, named after a 19-year-old student from Pennsylvania who was raped and murdered in a campus residence hall in 1986. Since 1990, all colleges and universities participating in federal financial aid programs are required to issue the report.

According to this year’s Clery Report, Western had a total of 109 crimes from 2006-2008, plus 103 arrests and 171 referrals for liquor law, drug law and weapons law violations. Of those crimes, the most frequent was burglary, a total of 94. Other crimes committed include seven motor vehicle thefts, four aggravated assaults, one robbery and two non-forcible sexual offenses.

From the perspective of University Police Chief Jon Kelley, the statistics of the Clery Report show that Western is a relatively safe campus devoid of the more serious crimes larger campuses deal with.

“Personally, I think Missouri Western is a very safe campus,” Kelley said. “We do get some reports of less serious crimes against persons and…property crimes, but fortunately we have not had many reports of the most serious crimes.”

According to the Department of Education crime report web site, located at http://www.ope.ed.gov/security/index.aspx, Northwest Missouri State University has had 134 crimes, 47 arrests and 310 disciplinary actions over the past three years, while the University of Missouri has had 115 crimes, 669 arrests and 1,557 disciplinary actions.

Sean O’Reilly, acting director of residential life, credits university police for the relatively low crime statistics on campus, including the residence halls.

“They’re a visible presence on campus,” O’Reilly said. “Over the last three to four years, they’ve worked very hard to make sure crimes are documented in the halls.”

Furthermore, O’Reilly notes that the University Police Department has a close working relationship with the St. Joseph Police Department, an assessment Kelley agrees with.

“Currently we share a radio system with the [St. Joseph and Buchanan County] Police Departments,” Kelly said. “…we [also] partner with the St. Joseph Police Department on other programs throughout the year.”

There’s no question that the crimes on campus, although low by comparison, are nevertheless an issue that is taken very seriously. University Police have posted Clery Act Timely Warning policies in compliance with the Clery Act all around campus, informing students of recently frequent crimes, including burglary and especially theft, which Kelley cites as the most frequently reported crime on campus.

Further putting the crime statistics in perspective, O’Reilly tells a story about a colleague at Indiana University and the types of crimes she had to deal with.

“[In a] 1,500 persona complex, she would deal with, on a given weekend, 25 to 30 alcohol incidents in her area alone,” O’Reilly said. “On a given weekend here, we don’t have all those things happening.”

To keep those types of crimes from happening, the student body needs to take certain precautions to protect themselves. Don’t carry large amounts of money on your person, don’t leave expensive items like iPods and laptops out in the open, make sure doors and windows are locked at all times and take the time to read the Timely Warning policies posted all around campus. Crime might not be as common or dangerous at Western in comparison to Northwest, but that’s no reason to create more statistics.

For more information, go to http://www.missouriwestern.edu/safetyreport/ for Missouri Western State University’s Clery report.