By SOPHIE HOOVER/Murphy News Service
The University of Minnesota Safety and Security report released Wednesday shows a mixed bag: rising and falling crime levels, depending on the category.
The report shared University Police Department statistics on criminal activity on and around the U Minneapolis and St. Paul campuses from 2012-2014 for categories ranging from sexual offenses to robbery.
On the Minneapolis and St. Paul campuses combined, the number of forcible sex offenses rose by 33 percent — from 18 reports to 24 — from 2013 to 2014. That increase was in spite of intense campus-wide efforts by the U to lower the number of sexual offenses with initiatives such as the No Gray campaign and “minimum sanction guideline” for offenders put in place by the Minnesota Students Association (MSA) last year.
On the bright side, aggravated assault numbers dropped by 75 percent and robbery was down by almost 50 percent.
The clear majority of crimes committed on and around the UMN campus involve drug and alcohol with about 1,511 reported incidents in 2014. That number represents a 7 percent decrease from 2013.
Reporter Sophie Hoover is studying journalism at the University of Minnesota.