Police are trying to find a person who has been secretly filming women on the Dalhousie University campus and posting the videos on YouTube.
Several videos are disturbing and thechronicleherald.ca will not name them or the pseudonym of the person who posted them. Those videos and images have since been removed from YouTube.
-->Recent Baton Rouge murders cause concern among locals
City’s crime rate now lower than last year's
By Sarah Eddington-->Staff Writer
Published: Tuesday, October 26, 2010
Updated: Tuesday, October 26, 2010 23:10
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Despite recent high-profile murders in Baton Rouge and the mayor-president's newly announced crime initiative, the city's crime rate is actually lower now than it was at this time last year, and experts say the University should not be overly concerned.
Baton Rouge has seen a decrease in violent crimes since this time last year with a 5 percent decrease in homicides alone, Baton Rouge Police Department Chief of Police Jeff LeDuff, who will retire Dec. 31, said at a news conference Oct. 7.
But two recent murders have raised public concern, including that of Darius Augustus, 17, an innocent bystander who was shot and killed while on the levee in early October, and Alexandra Engler, 42, who was shot and killed during a September home invasion and whose daughter was also shot but survived.
According to Ed Shihadeh, criminology professor, the number of reported crimes does not indicate an emergency.
"The numbers do not show we are in a state of emergency. It would have to be worse than last year," he said. "But what's different about those murders is that the victims were what the public perceives as truly innocent people."
Shihadeh said people are less likely to feel sympathy for victims involved in illegal or questionable activities like dealing drugs, but the two recent murders were a different circumstance.
"These people didn't do anything to increase their odds of being murdered," he said. "These were truly predatory crimes involving innocent victims."
Despite the horrific nature of the crimes, Shihadeh said the public has no more reason to be concerned than last year.
"These are very emotional crimes, so all it takes are one to two horrible cases, and people are going to react emotionally," he said. "It's subjective."
East Baton Rouge Mayor-President Kip Holden announced a new parish-wide crime initiative Oct. 7 that will combine BRPD officers with state troopers, East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff's deputies and agents from the District Attorney's Office in a collaborative effort to prevent crime.
Shihadeh said the initiative is a sensible and good-intentioned response but will most likely have limited effects.
"It's not going to make much of a difference," he said. "Blaming police for crime is like blaming the doctor because you got cancer."
Shihadeh said crime is a result of social problems, particularly poverty and lack of education.
"These things usually find their way into expression through violence," he said.
Shihadeh said it's important to look at crime patterns across several years and not just from year to year.
"Overall, violent crime is on the rise, largely due to the ferocious recession," he said. "My prediction is that we are returning to the bad old days of crime of the late '80s."
Despite these issues, Sgt. Blake Tabor, LSUPD spokesman, said the University usually doesn't feel the same effects as the rest of the city.
"We are a concentrated area, and we're afforded several opportunities that allow us to be more proactive," Tabor said. "A lot of it has to do with the proactive patrols we provide."
Tabor said city policing is much more demanding.
"We have a low call volume that probably pales in comparison [to that of city police]," he said. "We are in a completely different element from city police. Once 8 [a.m.] to 4 [p.m.] is over, our numbers are cutting in half, whereas in Baton Rouge, people live in the same areas they work."
But Tabor said he hopes the recent crime will make students more cautious.
"Our hope is that students are becoming more observant and being more aware of their surroundings," he said.
Shihadeh said the University should fear potential budget cuts to higher education and their effect on crime.
"Poverty and education go together," he said. "If you cut funding to education, you'll pay for it on the other end. It's no coincidence that Louisiana has one of the highest crime rates in the nation."
Shihadeh said continued cuts to public schools, including higher education, will likely result in increased crime.
"There's no question about it. If we don't educate our children and young adults, they won't have certain opportunities," he said. "That has a direct relationship with crime."
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Contact Sarah Eddington at seddington@lsureveille.com
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By Amelia Robinson, Staff Writer 7:58 PM Sunday, October 24, 2010DAYTON — The University of Dayton is urging students to keep their house windows and doors locked after break-ins Saturday night.
At least two houses in the North Student Neighborhood were burglarized around 9 p.m., according to a safety advisory issued Sunday to comply with Department of Education requirements.
An adult and a juvenile were apprehended shortly after a student contacted UD’s Department of Public Safety about the break-in of his Woodland Avenue home.
The suspects had property owned by the student who reported the crime and were arrested, the advisory says.
The second burglary was reported around the same time. Police believe the burglars entered through an unlocked door. They noted that criminals often prey on those who leave windows and doors unlocked.
Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2384 or arobinson@DaytonDailyNews.com.
Saturday, October 23rd, 2010 2:00 pmGeorgetown University police in Washington, D.C., discovered a clandestine drug lab inside a dorm room in a freshman residence hall, the Washington Post reported. Police arrested two male students and a campus visitor Saturday morning for possession of drug paraphernalia, hours after evacuating 400 students from the nine-floor hall. Officers initially believed they had found a methamphetamine lab. Later concluded the chemicals were for production of dimethyltryptamine or DMT, a hallucinogenic.
Students struggled to reconcile the discovery of a drug lab with their image of Georgetown, a national university with a scholarly and somewhat preppie culture. “I would understand if someone got caught doing it. Making it, that’s different. It’s shocking,” said Gina Park, 19, a sophomore from Hong Kong. A resident called campus police about 5 a.m. to report a strange odor coming from a room on the ninth floor. Officers went to the room and found “a variety of chemicals,” said Pete Piringer, a D.C. fire department spokesman. “They did have some heating equipment. They did have a ventilation system.”
Link: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/10/23/AR2010102302423.html
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It has been nearly five months since Karen Montenegro's only daughter, who had just completed her junior year at Arizona State University, was dragged to her death following a brazen purse snatching in Tempe, Ariz., on May 26, and no one has been charged with the murder.
Last Sunday, another ASU student was murdered, shot to death during a robbery attempt while walking from the library to his apartment. Honors student, Zachary Marco, 21, of Mesa, Ariz., was killed by two men who stole his laptop computer and cell phone.
Police have arrested a man they say twice disguised himself as a woman to get inside a UC Berkeley locker room, where he allegedly used his cell phone to photograph women.
TMCC Police are investigating a report of a possible mugging and sexual assault on campus Tuesday night. The victim said she was walking in one of the campus parking lots when she was hit from behind. She said she was knocked unconscious, and when she woke up, her money was gone and she may have been sexually assaulted.
While this incident may come as a surprise to students, they say, TMCC is a safe place. According to the school’s crime reports, it is, with the most crimes being committed—property damage.
"Most of the incidents happen have to do with people against property, so-to-speak,” J. Kyle Dalpe, TMCC Spokesperson said. “When somebody may break into a car and steal something. A person to person issue is not something we see, it’s very rare."
The school credits their distance away from the downtown area and the fact they do not have on-campus housing. However, students say they do take precautions, including walking together in groups or taking advantage of the campus escort services.
"I don't go to my car without other people with me,” Ileah Kirchoff said. “I would probably by slightly a little wary if I were to do that but usually I have people with me, and I feel pretty safe."
“I have a can of pepper spray and I won't walk to my car alone," Cassie Mason said.
"I carry pepper spray,” Ben Clowers said. “Never had to use it, not on this campus. This campus is really good, I feel pretty safe here."
As for the investigation, the victim is working with police. If you witnessed anything, you are urged to call TMCC Police or Secret Witness at 322-4900.
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Posted by: Anonymous on Oct 21, 2010 at 08:00 AM
What time did the attack on the victim that TMCC Police are investigating a report of a possible mugging and sexual assault on campus Tuesday night. The victim said she was walking in one of the campus parking lots when she was hit from behind. Also what time did this occur? Do you think it could possibly be related to A woman is being treated at Renown after being sexually kidnapped, assaulted, and dumped behind the old Butcher Boy location on Rock Boulevard in Sparks? Lieutenant Eric Thomas with Sparks police says the woman was found around 1:00 a.m. naked, covered only in a blanket, and with her hands bound together. She was covered with a clear, oily liquid, but police aren’t sure what that liquid was.
Top University of Richmond officials met for a 2.5-hour walk around the campus during the night of Oct. 20 to investigate areas in need of safety improvements.
Attendees of the “Walk Toward Safety” included: Howard Norton, chief of police; Joe Boehman, dean of Richmond College; Steve Bisese, vice president for student development; Ali Amaral, president of the Westhampton College Government Association; Suren Daryanani, president of the Richmond College Student Government Association; and University of Richmond Police Department officers, among others.
Although most of the statistics in the report remained relatively static between 2007 and 2009, there was a large increase in alcohol law violations between 2008 and 2009. Between those two years, the number of infractions reported to the department rose from 63 to 210 incidents, and the number of incidents handled by other university agencies climbed from 1034 to 1936.
Wigley said although the increases in alcohol law violations may be owed to the increasing number of underage students on campus and reporting techniques, it may also be an anomaly resulting from more students being referred for offenses at the same number of incidents.
The numbers indicate that violent crime is down in Tempe, but the one crime that has not decreased in that city is murder.Among the victims are two Arizona State University students and that has prompted a very real concern about safety on campus and the neighborhoods nearby.
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