Increases in arrests for drinking and on-campus burglaries were among the notable figures in the College's yearly report of crime statistics.
The College sent a link to this report via a campus-wide e-mail on Friday, Sept. 29. The College is required to release the information under the Jeanne Clery Act. According the Web site provided by the College in the e-mail, the act "is a federal law that requires colleges and universities to disclose certain timely and annual information about campus crime and security policies." The act is named for a Lehigh University student who was murdered in 1986.
The report is available at tcnj.edu/~tcnjpd/stats.html, and includes definitions for the offenses reported, emergency numbers, information on how to report crimes, the College's policies on drugs, alcohol, and sexual assault, and statistics that cover the years 2003-2005.
One category that saw an increase from 2004 to 2005 was liquor law violations on public property.
The number of arrests increased from zero in 2004 to 16 in 2005. Violations on "non-campus buildings or property" dropped from 26 in 2004 to zero in 2005. The frequency of on-campus burglaries increased between 2004 and 2005.
The report sent out by the College does not define the distinction between "public property" and "non-campus property," but the U.S. Department of Education's Handbook on the Clery Act defines public property as "all public property, including thoroughfares, streets, sidewalks and parking facilities, that is within the campus, or immediately adjacent to and accessible from the campus," as opposed to non-campus buildings or property, which is defined as "any building or property owned or controlled by a student organization that is officially recognized by the institution."
"Wherever the accused tells us they consumed the alcoholic beverage would determine the location," Sgt. Michael Bell of Campus Police said.
The College experienced an overall increase in liquor law violations. Lt. Don Rizzo said that a number of things could have led to the increase in arrests; the crime in question could have occurred more often or officers could have been more vigilant. "It's usually a combination of things," he said.
Rizzo offered the same explanation for the increase in burglaries, which occurred in both the residential facilities and on-campus categories.
"All we know is what we see," he said. "Nobody calls in and says they didn't commit a burglary."
