Opportunity theft, underage drinking top list of preliminary crime stats
Bruce Harbin
Issue date: 2/3/10 Section: Campus News
The Department of Public Safety has issued preliminary crime statistics that show that the two highest crimes on the UT Martin campus in 2009 were opportunity theft and underage drinking. Those preliminary statistics show that the opportunity theft rate has dropped from 2008, while underage drinking remains the same. Repeat offenses of underage drinking have dropped, however, while the number of underage drinking violations has remained constant.
"To combat the recidivism rate [of someone who is involved in underage drinking], we have found that early intervention greatly enhances the chances that that person won't repeat," said Capt. Ray Coleman, UT Martin Department of Public Safety. "That involves working with student conduct and putting them through program of alcohol awareness issues."
As for repeat offenders, Coleman says: "We have the student affairs and the court system."
Combating opportunity theft, Coleman says, is about education and "making people aware through saturation of media." He also sites housing with being a big part of reminding students about thefts that have occurred on campus.
Two more high-profiled crimes that occurred on or around the campus in 2009 were the arrest of Tai Dante Young and the "Big Bellied" rapist case.
A previous Pacer article reported that "Tai Dante Young, a freshman Marketing and Economics major at the time of his arrest, was arrested on campus by the UTM Public Safety and Martin police officers on Oct. 28. He was recently indicted by the January 2010 term of the Weakley County grand jury on charges of possession of a controlled substance with intent to sell, drug paraphernalia and two charges of unlawful possession of firearms during a dangerous felony. Young is scheduled to appear before the Weakley County Circuit Court Feb. 4."
Also in another previous Pacer article, The "Big Bellied" rapist, Bruce Tuck, 36, "pleaded guilty to all six counts of aggravated rape. Tuck was sentenced to three 20 year prison terms for the rapes in each indictment with each one running consecutively for a total sentence of 60 years."
"To combat the recidivism rate [of someone who is involved in underage drinking], we have found that early intervention greatly enhances the chances that that person won't repeat," said Capt. Ray Coleman, UT Martin Department of Public Safety. "That involves working with student conduct and putting them through program of alcohol awareness issues."
As for repeat offenders, Coleman says: "We have the student affairs and the court system."
Combating opportunity theft, Coleman says, is about education and "making people aware through saturation of media." He also sites housing with being a big part of reminding students about thefts that have occurred on campus.
Two more high-profiled crimes that occurred on or around the campus in 2009 were the arrest of Tai Dante Young and the "Big Bellied" rapist case.
A previous Pacer article reported that "Tai Dante Young, a freshman Marketing and Economics major at the time of his arrest, was arrested on campus by the UTM Public Safety and Martin police officers on Oct. 28. He was recently indicted by the January 2010 term of the Weakley County grand jury on charges of possession of a controlled substance with intent to sell, drug paraphernalia and two charges of unlawful possession of firearms during a dangerous felony. Young is scheduled to appear before the Weakley County Circuit Court Feb. 4."
Also in another previous Pacer article, The "Big Bellied" rapist, Bruce Tuck, 36, "pleaded guilty to all six counts of aggravated rape. Tuck was sentenced to three 20 year prison terms for the rapes in each indictment with each one running consecutively for a total sentence of 60 years."
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