Crime occurs
even in Cedar

Cedar City residents need to learn crime prevention techniques to protect themselves from burglary.
Just because Cedar City is a small town, many people believe that nothing bad will ever happen.
The disappointing fact is that crime happens. It happens on campus and in Cedar City.
According to the SUU Department of Public Safety’s Web site (www.suu.edu/ad/safety), between five and 17 incidents were investigated on campus each month during 2002.
Also, during Christmas break, a Utah Highway Patrol officer was shot at as he left Autozone.
Public Safety also investigated four larceny cases that occurred in December 2002, the same Web site said.
In one of the larceny cases, five master camera hasps, valuing $4,000, were taken from the Technology Building, the police report said.
On Jan. 23, burglars shattered the windows of seven vehicles in Cedar City.
The definition of an auto burglary is the unlawful entry into a vehicle to commit a theft, said Cedar City Police Sgt. David Holm.
Sixteen auto burglaries occurred between Jan. 1 and Jan. 30, Holm said.
Auto burglary is a growing problem on campus.
According to the same Web site, nine vehicle thefts occurred on campus during 2002, whereas only one case occurred each year during 1999, 2000, and 2001.
All SUU students and Cedar City residents need to get into the habit of locking their home and car doors.
Police officers encourage people to lock their doors, roll up windows and remove valuables from view.
These simple precautions deter crime.
Unfortunately, too many people, especially in Cedar City, who are not concerned with protecting themselves.
Statistics from a Cedar City press release show that 60 percent of vehicles burglarized in 1998 were unlocked. Six percent of the stolen items were in the back of trucks, and 23 percent of the car owners did not know if their vehicles were locked.

 

Only 11 percent of the vehicles burglarized in 1998 were locked.Holm said it is important to have working locks on all car doors.
Jim Turner, SUU Public Safety chief, told the University Journal that if valuables are visible, a burglar might break a window to get into the car.
Purses or wallets, CDs, a paycheck and portable CD players are all easily seen and taken, Holm said.
Turner said people pay a lot of money for car alarms, but alarms are ineffective because people do not pay attention to them.
We urge all students, faculty, and staff to lock their doors, roll up windows, and remove valuables.
It is an easy way for people to protect themselves.
“Whether you lock (a vehicle) or not, take valuables with you,” Holm said. “More and more burglars are breaking windows to get things they want.”
The opinion expressed above is the collective perspective of the University Journal editorial board. The editorial board meets every Tuesday at 6 p..m. in Room 172 of the Sharwan Smith Center. Visitors are welcome.