Crime at TU is common in student residences and in the center of campus
By Karuga Koinange
DJ Burke was walking to his dorm just after 11 p.m. one night after hanging out at the Towson Town Center for most of the evening. Burke, then a freshman residing in Tower D at the Glen Complex, had barely exited the mall before disaster struck.
He was hit from both sides and knocked to the ground by two assailants. Burke immediately rushed to his dorm and reported what had happened to his dorm resident assistant, who then reported the incident to the Towson University Police Department.
Assaults like this one are senseless and unpredictable -- and they are not rare on Towson University's campus. According to an analysis of nearly 600 TUPD crime reports from 2016 and 2017, there have been 50 assaults reported in the past two years, including first degree, second degree and domestic -- though as with many crimes reported, some were eventually deemed by police as unfounded.
Shannon Jacobsen, a sociology lecturer at the College of William & Mary and a campus crime expert, said that a high volume of crime happens in or near student residences given the density of people.
“The vast majority of crimes tend to happen within residence halls or dorms, since students are living in very close proximity with one another,” Jacobsen said. “Dorms are probably the most common location [for crime] since it's literally people living on top of each other.”
Burke said he would rather be in a heavily populated area than alone. He said that isolation can be dangerous, as demonstrated in the assault.
“Anywhere where it’s intended to have high populations of people I believe is safer because you’re alleviating the isolation risk,” Burke said.
Tower A in the Glen Complex, where Burke now serves as an RA, is the most crime-ridden residence hall on campus, according to TUPD reports.
In just the last two years, 36 crimes have been reported in Tower A and, as displayed in the graphic below, there are many types of crimes that take place in that building such as controlled dangerous substances (CDS) violations, theft and destruction of property.
Many buildings on campus have been the sites of crime. As shown in the maps below, this is especially prevalent in the Towers and West Village residences. Crime in these buildings over the last two years has largely been alcohol and CDS violations, with more than 50 reports of such violations combined.
Alcohol/cds violations high in towersSource for maps: TUPD Crime Reports
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Alcohol/cds violations high in west village housing |
Jacobsen said that supervision of students in dorms is often an issue. She said that the relationship between RAs and residents is often strained, and she suggested that hiring external staffers to work as RAs could help reduce crime.
“Universities could try and make RAs more active within dorms, but the problem I’ve seen is that RAs are more likely to be senior students who don’t necessarily want to rat out their peers or the ones they are living amongst,” Jacobsen said.
Burke said that whenever a crime is committed in the Glen Complex, TUPD holds a briefing with the RA staff to discuss strategies that they can use to prevent future crime. He emphasized that with hundreds of students in each residence tower, RAs are usually limited to defaulting to TUPD rather than handling crimes themselves.
“We always try to be proactive in setting boundaries to making things better,” Burke said. “It’s that [police] presence that’s there that often helps in these high traffic times.”
Crime in the residential areas on campus can also fluctuate by semesters. The 2016 and 2017 crime reports show that crime in West Village housing rises in the fall while crime in the Towers goes up during the spring.
“Universities could try and make RAs more active within dorms, but the problem I’ve seen is that RAs are more likely to be senior students who don’t necessarily want to rat out their peers or the ones they are living amongst,” Jacobsen said.
Burke said that whenever a crime is committed in the Glen Complex, TUPD holds a briefing with the RA staff to discuss strategies that they can use to prevent future crime. He emphasized that with hundreds of students in each residence tower, RAs are usually limited to defaulting to TUPD rather than handling crimes themselves.
“We always try to be proactive in setting boundaries to making things better,” Burke said. “It’s that [police] presence that’s there that often helps in these high traffic times.”
Crime in the residential areas on campus can also fluctuate by semesters. The 2016 and 2017 crime reports show that crime in West Village housing rises in the fall while crime in the Towers goes up during the spring.
Jacobsen said that this could be due to new students moving in, thus increasing the number of potential criminals and victims in those areas.
The center of campus stands out as one of the most crime-filled areas. Over the last two years, the most commonly committed crime on campus (126 instances) has been theft.
As shown in the graphic below, the Liberal Arts Building, University Union and Cook Library have been the primary locations for theft.
The center of campus stands out as one of the most crime-filled areas. Over the last two years, the most commonly committed crime on campus (126 instances) has been theft.
As shown in the graphic below, the Liberal Arts Building, University Union and Cook Library have been the primary locations for theft.
Jacobsen said that students can take preventative measures to avoid being robbed such as not leaving their items alone.
“Students see what other students have, and will want to take those items,” Jacobsen said. “I think another problem is that students will often trust that other students won’t take their stuff, so they leave their belongings out and then they get stolen.”
There are some situations that are simply out of people’s control, though, such as destruction of property. Burke said that this crime, similar to the assault that he experienced, is usually random.
The following image shows the objects that have been damaged or broken due to destruction of property according to the TUPD crime reports from 2016 and 2017.
Burke said he would like to see students coordinating more with TUPD to discuss safeguards and new protocol that can be established in order to make criminals reluctant.
“TUPD is always willing to come over,” Burke said. “That’s why I think crime can be alleviated because with Towson police being so close they just hop right over and we can knock it right out.”
“TUPD is always willing to come over,” Burke said. “That’s why I think crime can be alleviated because with Towson police being so close they just hop right over and we can knock it right out.”
Crimes occur at all hours on Towson's campus
By Kerry Ingram
Tamara Williams was ready to have a good time on the night of her friend’s 20th birthday. The two had met during their time at Towson University, and they joined several mutual friends for a night on the town. They found a club in Washington D.C., rented a limousine and prepared for a celebration worth remembering.
Williams, whose name has been changed to protect her identity, expected the night to go smoothly. Her friends were dressed up, each wearing the brightest smiles on their way to the club. The group laughed and joked with each other as they waited in line. But their mood would soon change.
Upon their arrival at the D.C. club, the girls strutted to the entrance and were greeted by a bouncer. The man, tall and expressionless, requested a form of identification. With confidence, Williams reached into her wallet and handed him her license. To her surprise and dismay, she did not receive it back.
Williams was 20 years old the first time she got caught with a fake ID.
“We [all] ended up getting our IDs taken by the bouncer,” Williams said. “He said that we could get them back at the end of the night, but we never did because at the time we were leaving, he was talking to a police officer. We didn’t think it would be a good idea [to approach him].”
Williams, who had used her fake ID for more than two years, had never been caught at or near Towson University. But according to an analysis of nearly 600 crimes reported by the Towson University Police Department over two years (2016 and 2017), there were 27 reports of such infractions. They account for just 4 percent of all crimes reported over these two years, but they are nevertheless memorable for those who are caught.
Theft is Towson's top-reported crime. The other most prevalent crimes at the school – alcohol violations, controlled dangerous substances violations and assault – all mainly occur in the evenings, each hitting a peak between the hours of 6 p.m. and midnight. This differs from fake ID usage, which occurs evenly spread throughout the day. It's important to note that some reported crimes ended up being unfounded, according to TU police.
Crimes at Towson are most likely to occur between the hours of noon and 6 p.m. rather than at night.
“I think this has a lot to do with where students are,” said Shannon Jacobsen, a sociology lecturer at the College of William & Mary and a campus crime expert. “The vast majority of crimes like theft tend to happen within residence halls or dorms, since students are living in very close proximity with each other and can see other students' valuables. My guess is that at Towson, if students are commonly finishing their classes in the morning or afternoon and head back to their dorms, a lot of them are going to be there between noon. and 6 p.m. for crimes to occur. After 6 p.m., students may either be studying or heading off campus to other places.”
“I think this has a lot to do with where students are,” said Shannon Jacobsen, a sociology lecturer at the College of William & Mary and a campus crime expert. “The vast majority of crimes like theft tend to happen within residence halls or dorms, since students are living in very close proximity with each other and can see other students' valuables. My guess is that at Towson, if students are commonly finishing their classes in the morning or afternoon and head back to their dorms, a lot of them are going to be there between noon. and 6 p.m. for crimes to occur. After 6 p.m., students may either be studying or heading off campus to other places.”
Added Jacobsen: “Crimes are always more likely to occur during times of a lot of movement. Whenever there’s a really large number of students concentrated in one space, there’s bound to be some type of crime, even if it’s just petty theft.”
At Towson, March 2016 and September 2017 were the months with the most crimes. March, which includes spring break week, and September, which is the school’s fall move-in time, both consist of week-long periods of student movement and traffic. These are also months heavy in the partying and bar scenes.
At Towson, March 2016 and September 2017 were the months with the most crimes. March, which includes spring break week, and September, which is the school’s fall move-in time, both consist of week-long periods of student movement and traffic. These are also months heavy in the partying and bar scenes.
Williams is quite familiar with the campus partying and bar scenes.
“[My] sophomore and junior years, everyone I knew had [a fake ID],” Williams said. “You needed it in order to have a good time going out and partying on the weekends.”
Bars around Towson claimed to have methods for catching fake ID usage, such as having a list of required questions users must be able to answer, or booklets that guide employees on what regular state licenses are supposed to look like. Towson’s Greene Turtle bar often encounters this issue.
“We have guests who try to use fake IDs on a regular basis,” said Jill Packo, an employee at the bar. “Many times, the best way to catch guests trying to use a fake ID is to ask multiple questions, or to ask for a second form of ID.”
The questionnaire system may be a method bars turn to in order to limit ID fraud within their businesses, but students like Williams have found ways around it.
“One time, I used my fake ID in Federal Hill, downtown,” Williams said. “The guy knew my ID was fake and started quizzing me on it, but I knew the answers to all the questions he was asking me and ended up getting in the bar anyway.”
According to Jacobsen, a recent study found that close to half of college students reported ever using a fake ID.
“Fake ID usage itself isn’t typically counted as an individual crime in campus crime reports,” Jacobsen said. “It’s usually placed under a larger umbrella with 'alcohol violations.' The most common college crimes are property crime and theft. Those are usually looked at in more detail, and most of these crimes are likely to occur in the late afternoon to evening hours.”
Williams said she knows “about 25 people” who all own fake IDs at Towson.
“[With a fake ID], you get to drink, you get to go out with your friends, and you look cool because everyone knows that having a fake is illegal so you seem like a badass for not caring,” Williams said. “But on the flip side, it is illegal. You could get in trouble, and turning 21 isn’t actually as fun because by then, you’ve been to bars already.”
Added Jacobsen: “Essentially, it’s all about students wanting to fit in. It seems like this will always be a problem on campus since students, and particularly those who live on campus, enter college believing that so much of the college experience centers around social situations. As long as the drinking age is 21 and the average undergraduate tends to be between the ages of 17 and 22, this problem won’t ever go away. “
“[My] sophomore and junior years, everyone I knew had [a fake ID],” Williams said. “You needed it in order to have a good time going out and partying on the weekends.”
Bars around Towson claimed to have methods for catching fake ID usage, such as having a list of required questions users must be able to answer, or booklets that guide employees on what regular state licenses are supposed to look like. Towson’s Greene Turtle bar often encounters this issue.
“We have guests who try to use fake IDs on a regular basis,” said Jill Packo, an employee at the bar. “Many times, the best way to catch guests trying to use a fake ID is to ask multiple questions, or to ask for a second form of ID.”
The questionnaire system may be a method bars turn to in order to limit ID fraud within their businesses, but students like Williams have found ways around it.
“One time, I used my fake ID in Federal Hill, downtown,” Williams said. “The guy knew my ID was fake and started quizzing me on it, but I knew the answers to all the questions he was asking me and ended up getting in the bar anyway.”
According to Jacobsen, a recent study found that close to half of college students reported ever using a fake ID.
“Fake ID usage itself isn’t typically counted as an individual crime in campus crime reports,” Jacobsen said. “It’s usually placed under a larger umbrella with 'alcohol violations.' The most common college crimes are property crime and theft. Those are usually looked at in more detail, and most of these crimes are likely to occur in the late afternoon to evening hours.”
Williams said she knows “about 25 people” who all own fake IDs at Towson.
“[With a fake ID], you get to drink, you get to go out with your friends, and you look cool because everyone knows that having a fake is illegal so you seem like a badass for not caring,” Williams said. “But on the flip side, it is illegal. You could get in trouble, and turning 21 isn’t actually as fun because by then, you’ve been to bars already.”
Added Jacobsen: “Essentially, it’s all about students wanting to fit in. It seems like this will always be a problem on campus since students, and particularly those who live on campus, enter college believing that so much of the college experience centers around social situations. As long as the drinking age is 21 and the average undergraduate tends to be between the ages of 17 and 22, this problem won’t ever go away. “
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