Know your campus: Annual university crime statistics released

Data is now available about campus crimes reported in 2022 with the annual release of the Stanford Department of Public Safety’s Safety, Security, and Fire Report.

“The annual report provides a helpful snapshot of what safety issues face our community, as well as valuable information about safety policies and campus resources,” said Laura Wilson, the university’s director of public safety. “We encourage the community to take a few minutes to review this useful information that can help keep them safe.”

Under the federal Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act, the Stanford Department of Public Safety (DPS) collects statistics on certain crimes that occur on campus and property immediately adjacent to campus that is used by students, such as Stanford Hospital, Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital, and SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory. The crimes for which data is collected include aggravated assault; alcohol and drug law violations; arson; burglary; domestic and dating violence; hate crimes; murder/manslaughter; robbery; sex crimes; stalking; vehicle theft; and weapon violations.

The 2022 statistics are available on the Stanford DPS website.

The crime statistics include alleged offenses, including attempts, reported last year to university staff and police, as well as data from the two years prior. The report indicates where the reported crimes were alleged to have occurred, such as at a student residence, on campus, or on public property immediately adjacent to campus. The report also offers guidance on how to respond to emergency situations like earthquakes, information about the Stanford Community Board on Public Safety, how the AlertSU mass notification system works, and more.

“Overall, campus is a safe place,” said Lucia Wade, the university’s Clery compliance coordinator. “Compared to a municipality of the same size, we have lower crime rates than most, and generally, people and their property are safe and secure on campus.”

However, community members should be aware of what crimes are being reported and be vigilant to help safeguard themselves, Wade added. Also, sexual assault remains a concern at campuses nationwide, and the community needs to be attentive for the safety and support of survivors.

The numbers

The onset of the pandemic in 2020 impacted these crime statistics over the last few years as the university largely operated remotely before people began returning to campus in 2021. The 2022 numbers included more than 2,000 reports made to the university or to the police and reviewed by DPS – about 500 more than the previous year – and reflects a return to pre-pandemic numbers.

Of note, a change in one crime category’s definition – motor vehicle theft – resulted in a sharp year-over-year increase. There were 150 motor vehicle thefts reported in 2022, while 21 were reported in 2021 and 24 were reported in 2020.

The increase reflects new guidance by the Department of Education that now counts e-bikes and e-scooters as motor vehicles, and the increasing popularity of these modes of transportation, Wade explained.

Previously, those would have fallen under the category of theft, which is not tracked under the Clery Act but is included in the Stanford DPS’ annual California Education Code report released at the end of the calendar year.

Most of the e-scooters and e-bikes that were reported stolen were taken from bike racks outside residences and dining areas, Wade said. She recommended people keep a record of their property’s serial number in case it is ever stolen.

Also, “we encourage everyone to take an active role in community safety,” Wade said. Generally, the community should be vigilant about securing their property and keeping their windows and doors locked when they are not present. Wade added that it is most helpful for people to report suspicious activity immediately. “We increase our chances of making an arrest, and preventing theft and other crimes when we are notified in a timely manner by community members.”

Among other statistics included in the report, there were 20 aggravated assaults reported in 2022 – up from 16 in 2021 and down from 22 in 2020 – and nine of those occurred in student residences. There were 25 burglaries reported in 2022, down from 31 in 2021 and 42 in 2020, and 17 of those occurred in student residences. Two robberies were reported last year.

In the area of sex offenses, there were 33 rapes reported to Campus Security Authorities, primarily the Title IX Office, last year, up from 30 in 2021 and 15 in 2020; 25 reports of fondling, up from 14 in 2021 and 17 in 2020; and one report of statutory rape following two years in which none were reported. All of the sexual offenses reported last year were reported as occurring on campus, with 23 of the rapes and 10 of the fondling incidents occurring in student residences.

Last year, there were 16 reports of domestic violence and 41 reports of stalking were reported – both up from the previous two years. There was one incident of dating violence reported in 2022. Under California law, dating violence is included in domestic violence; the dating violence incident from 2022 occurred in another jurisdiction where there are distinct sections in the state code.

There were 14 arrests for violations related to drugs, one liquor law arrest, and seven weapon laws arrest.

“The DPS Clery Compliance team works diligently throughout the year to gather and review information about reported crimes so that the community has access to accurate information,” Wade said. “I encourage community members to report crimes to the police or other campus security authorities, especially crimes such as sexual assault and dating violence that are often underreported.”

Hate crimes

There were seven hate crimes reported in 2022: one case of battery, one attempted battery, two cases of intimidation, two thefts, and one vandalism. Incidents include:

• A woman was walking on Campus Drive when a stranger came up behind her, slapped her, grabbed her shoulder, and ripped her shirt while making comments about her race.
• A man was holding hands with his husband when a stranger spat at them.
• A person reported that his mezuzah was stolen from the door of his residence on Rosh Hashanah.
• An Israeli flag was reported stolen from a dormitory common area.
• Someone vandalized a chair backrest in a classroom by scratching “KKK” into it.
• A student with a website sharing Black Lives Matter content received a message from an unknown person disagreeing with the student’s ideology and stating they would “hunt” down the victim and others in the student group affiliated with the website.
• Someone fashioned a rope that had been hanging from a tree on campus for years into a noose.

“Each report of a hate crime can damage the community’s sense of safety,” Wilson said. “DPS encourages those impacted by hate crime to seek support through the university’s many resources.”

In accordance with the Clery Act, the annual report also notes any cases which the police determined to be unfounded. Last year, two reports of sexual assaults on campus were deemed to have been unfounded and led to criminal charges against the person who reported both false reports, according to a community update.

Resources

The Stanford DPS can be contacted during business hours at (650) 723-9633; at its 24-hour non-emergency line at (650) 329-2413; and for emergencies at 911 or 9911 from a campus phone. The department can also be reached at police@stanford.edu.

Stanford encourages those who have been abused to seek support through various resources offered by the university. In 2020, the university created the SHARE Title IX Office as a central resource for redressing and preventing sexual harassment and violence issues experienced by Stanford community members.

Students can also contact the Stanford Confidential Support Team, which offers a 24/7 hotline for urgent support, Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) in Vaden Health Services, and the YWCA @ Stanford Program, while faculty and staff can contact the Faculty Staff Help Center.

Stanford encourages anyone who has been the victim of a hate crime or bias-motivated incident to seek support and report the incident. The process for reporting incidents in which a community member feels harmed at Stanford is called Protected Identity Harm (PIH) Reporting. It is managed by staff who work closely with and in the Office of Inclusion, Community and Integrative Learning and the Office of the Dean of Students.

Also, the Stanford Threat Assessment Team provides threat and violence prevention resources, proactively develops procedures for response to actual or potential violence, and more.