High Point's High Crime Rates: Are Students Safe?

High Point's High Crime Rates: Are Students Safe?

A windshield cracked in half, a rear view mirror ripped off, items from the glove compartment strewn all around the passenger's side: this is the state in which one High Point University student found her car after returning to campus the Sunday following Halloween. Worse yet, she found that her $400 ipod had also been stolen.

The individual, Morgan Gunn, immediately called security, who informed her that six or seven other cars had also been broken into in the lower-Blessing lot and recommended that she file a report with the High Point Police Department.

Unfortunately, this incident was not an isolated one. Similar incidents of larceny and vandalism occur frequently in the city of High Point, and a few have even occurred on Campus.

Crime in High Point

According to High Point crime statistics from a 2003 FBI report, crime in High Point is either equal to or above the national average in every category (i.e. Murder, Burglary, Robbery). In addition, High Point's Violent Crime Rate is 1.43 times the national average and its Property Crime Rate is 1.46 times the national average.

More alarming still is the number of crimes that have occurred within close proximity to the HPU campus. According to the High Point Police Department's Community Crime Map, there have been a number of crimes reported within a mile radius of campus in just the past 31 days (month). The number of reported crimes, according to this map, comes to a total of 88, including: 27 counts of larceny, 21 counts of burglary, 12 drug counts, 11 counts of vandalism, 9 counts of assault and more.

So, with such a high crime rate in the city of High Point, with many incidents occurring just within a mile of campus, the question arises: are High Point University students safe?

Is the HPU Campus Safe?

The car break-in incident in the lower-Blessing lot might seem to suggest that campus is not safe. And a more recent incident, in which a couple of residents, or "townies," allegedly forced their way into an on-campus house and stole a phone, might seem to confirm this.

But according to the Head of Campus Security, Jeffrey Karpovich, it is still unclear whether force was actually used in this case and it is still under investigation.

Furthermore, it seems possible that students may actually be more responsible for criminal activity on campus than High Point residents.

For instance, in an interview with Mr. Karpovich, he said that students were the ones responsible for one of the more recent crime-related incidents on campus, a first-degree burglary. "Which sounds pretty serious," he said, but then he went on to explain that it was just a couple of kids, "probably intoxicated," going into some one's room after dark.

Mr. Karpovich also mentioned that there have been a couple of recent thefts of property and vandalism but thinks it was "students stealing from students".

When Morgan, whose car was broken into and ipod stolen, was asked whether she thought "townies" or students were responsible, she said, "High Point residents...I'd like to think that no student would be that malicious."

What's Being Done?

Regardless, however, of who is responsible for on-campus crime, the real issue is what's being done about it. Are these matters being dealt with, or allowed to continue?

When Head of Security, Mr. Karpovich, was asked what measures were being taken to make campus safer, his response was, "How long have you got?" He says that over 125 documented improvements have been made since he came to HPU, which was about 6 months ago. Some of these improvements include: tripling the number of uniformed staff, giving transportation duties to other personnel, rather than officers, creating patrol sectors, and making minimum requirements for security officers prior to hiring, such as physical and psychological examinations, and training.

Links:

http://www.highpoint.edu/campuslife/publicsafety/

http://www.campuschronicle.org/

http://www.high-point.net/police/

5 Safety Tips
From the Head of Campus Security
Jeffrey Karpovich

1. Look out for yourself: "Safety is your responsibility"
2. Keep your valuables out of sight: "Leave it for the sky, kiss it goodbye"
3. Be aware of your surroundings: "From inside to outside: side by side"
4. "If you see something [suspicious], say something"
5. Have security and the police on speed dial

Safety Tips Video: