Monday, March 3, 1986/The Battalion/Page 5
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150 years of Texas
Theft at A&M
Students urged to reduce thieves' chances
By KIM ROY
Reporter
Students must take precautions to
protect themselves and their prop
erty against theft, says Elmer E.
Schneider, University Police chief.
“It takes three things for a crime
to occur: The thief must have the
ability, the desire and the opportuni
ty,” Schneider says.
While nothing can be done about
a thiefs ability or desire, students
can remove, or at least reduce, a
thiefs opportunities, he says.
Schneider says there’s been an
outbreak of burglaries in the dormi
tories, especially in the Commons
area.
He says the burglar enters un
locked aorm rooms in the early
morning or late night hours, and
primarily takes cash and jewelry.
Schneider says students must lock
their doors.
“We haven’t had a forced entry,”
he says.
Schneider says $178,068 in state
and private property has been re
ported stolen since the fall semester
oegan. He says only $30,626 — 17
percent — has been recovered, he
says.
He says no one has been harmed
yet, but there could be a problem if a
student corners the thief in a dorm
room.
Tom Murray, assistant director
for student affairs, says, “The whole
problem,in my mind, is students will
not lock their doors.”
The dorms’ outside doors are
locked after visiting hours, but Mur
ray says some women thwart security
efforts by propping open the outside
doors after visiting hours.
Residents are given a key to the
outside doors, but many women
don’t like to carry them, so the doors
are propp>ed open, Murray says.
Some outside doors have push
button codes instead of keys. Murray
says the combinations are changed
several times each year, but the com
binations easily oecome common
knowledge.
Murray says the best his office can
do is make students aware of the
crime statistics on campus and give
tips on how students can protect
themselves.
Jan Winniford, assistant director
of student affairs, says the dorms are
divided into four geographic areas:
the Commons area, the Corps area,
the Central area and the North area.
Each area has two full-time assis
tant area coordinators who have
been generating new ideas on how to
make students more aware of crime
prevention, she says.
Murray says the Corps of Cadets
may begin issuing demerits for leav
ing unattended rooms unlocked.
Murray says in the future, a stu
dent who loses his key and doesn’t
find it within 14 days will have to pay
for a new lock.
Currently, a student has the
choice of whether or not to have the
locks changed when keys are lost,
Murray says.
Monica Christen, assistant area
coordinator for the North area, says
her area has developed new posters
as a result of the recent outbreak of
thefts.
She says a memo will be sent to the
students calling attention to the
crimes and asking for new ideas on
security and crime prevention.
Schneider says he has special secu
rity plans for spring break.
He says students should lock their
rooms when they leave. As soon as
the students are gone, his officers
will check every dorm room to make
sure everything is locked and secure,
he says.
March 8
5 p.m.-2 a.m.
Memorial Student
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10 p.m.-2 a.m.
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Contests & Prizes • BBQ Cafe
Concert Series
proudly presents
THE ^TEXAS <A&M SYMPHONIC BAND
director - c Mr. Bill J. Dean
‘In Concert March 6,1986
S'OOpm-GRudder theatre
Tickets $1.00
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