1, 2004
FRIDAY Focus
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By Melissa Benton and Ashley DOIF
Daily
O~~li a1~Ycars a ocarspicured ab 0t110c
of Pul Qviee. ppS ownsadcclce, K-9 an
ofieonKp kAPDsafetyveil
addition to public v~9 b
Morning Shift
/
Afternoon Shift
9:00 a.ii. to noon
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9:1 wit. - Left DPS drove around the Baker district. Cam-
p us is divided into three areas covered by DPS - Adam,
Baker and Charles districts. Adam encompasses all of the
athletic cam us, Michigan Stadium, Cnsler Arena and
dorms like West Quad and South Quad residence halls.
The Baker district includes the rest of Central Campus and
the Diag and the Charles district is all of North Campus.
9:24 a.m. - Stopped at the Corner House building by the
Modern Languages Building to check for homeless people
that had been in the building the night before. There were
no problems at the time. "It really oes in spurts. We haven't
had much of a problem this year,' Hawkins said.
9:31 a.t - Left Thayer Street and drove by the Church
Street carport, which Hawkins said is the worst spot for
crime on campus. "By far, the biggest problem on campus
is the Church carport," Hawkins said. He added DPS offi-
cers sometimes enter the structure on bicycles to look for
people using drugs or drinking underage, and that there is
more crime than anywhere else.
9:36 a.m. Arrived at the new DPS Palmer Commons
office. While there, we spoke to Paula Williams, a public
safety officer and 2001 LSA graduate who worked at DPS
when she was a student. Though the student program was
cut due to funding issues, several current DPS officers also
worked in the program.
10:19 a. - Arrived at DPS main office on Kipke Drive,
where I spoke to Police Captain Charles Noffsinger about
background information on the department.
10:28 a.m.- Left DPS, drove around Adam and Baker dis-
tricts.
9s:0 p m. Left DPS office-and-headed towards North
Campus.
.9:15 ;JprJ Drove by Pierpont-Commons and around
oFami yHousing.
I 9:.$ T.m. - Drove around Arbor Lakes, a three-building
complex that houses the telecommunications offices.
9:36 p.m. - Drove around the University Health Center.
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-9;V$p.m. -Veld received,,a call that there was a garage
door that would not close at the Art and Architecture
Building.
I 9:54 p.m. - Arrived at the Art and Architecture Building.
Veldchecked inside the building, and then he checked to
lsee.if the- door could close:.He confirmed that both the
electric switch and the chain to the door were broken.
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10:00 p.m. - Veld called maintenance to come secure
the door.
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10:10 p.m. - VeidVgot a calltoBaxter Pumps,one of the
two locations where University vehicles can refuel.
10:17 p.m.- Arrived .at Baxter Pumps, and.witnesses
claimed they saw a man stealing gasoline. "Over at the
maintenance building they keep gas stored there for
Imowers: They-think thesuspect) oksome and poured
it into other cans that (the suspect) may have brought
I from home," Veld said.
1 10:7 p.m. - Arrived at maintenance building to investi-
gate the incident.
4n m - d k~1 d , c'ne-pd £i t fr i i- m, .i to mh
10:33 a.m. - Arrived at DPS Wolverine Tower office. I
met Kurt Kohtz, a DPS police officer who has been work-
ing at DPS since it began in the early '90s and said he has
witnessed the change in student attitudes toward DPS.
"Once they tried to initiate the department, there was a lot
of animosity," Kohtz said. Now, he said, perceptions have
changed. "We've beenestablished. We're theirfriends."
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: V.WPM. e asI eSG suspecL or permIIsson o LUsearcl
vehicle. Veld's search proved that the suspect did not
steal any gasoline.
11:01 p.m..- eaded to~entral.Canpus. ....
11:09 a.m. - Left Wolverine Tower, cruised around Baker I 11:15 p.m. - Veld decided to do a check on the Church
district. . --- Street carport-
TREVOR CAMPBELL/Daily
DPS Officer David Hawkins said the Church Street carport Is one of
the most common areas for crime on campus. DPS officers will often
patrol the structure on bicycles In order to check for misconduct.
11:17 a.i. - Received call for an abandoned vehicle near
Alice Lloyd Residence Hall on Observatory Street. The
driver of:a freight truck had some problems with smoke
exhaust coming out of the vehicles tailpipe and could
not find the building he needed to make a delivery to, but"
Hawkins provided assistance.
II 4$ aa.m. - Taxi driver blocking traffic on East University
Avenue while cruising the Baker district. Hawkins asked
him to move.
11 :5 a.* - Stopped at Michigan Stadium to assist officers
monitoring set-up before the football game.
11:56 a.A - Returned to base at Kipke Drive. Officer
Hawkins received a call to check afire alarm at the Central
Campus Recreation Building as I left.
I 11:17 p.m. - Veld noticed two people making out in a
vehicle, 'but"decidedto-'leave-themalone because they
weren't doing anything "criminal."
I 11:20 p.m. -Veld got out of the vehicle to check on two
minors sitting on top of the parking structure.
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11:31 p.m. - Veld pulled a vehicle over that was going 50
mph in a 35 mph zone on Fuller Road.
1:37 p.m. - Veld issued a verbal warning for speeding.
11:50 p.m. - Returned to DPS, and Veld spent 15 to 20
minutes updating reports.
9PS: Preaking it down
For University students, the Department of Safety is an
ever-present force on campus, and University life without it
would seem odd.
The department, formed in the early '90s, includes three
different types of officers who staff each office on campus
- police officers, public safety officers and housing security
officers. The main office is located near Crisler Arena, while
other offices on campus are located at Pierpont Commons,
Wolverine Tower and Palmer Commons.
All University buildings,n
'That's all we're
looking for -- the
respect we give (to
studenlts) -- we
expect that back."
-- avid Hawkins
VFPS Oficer
residence halls and streets are
within DPS jurisdiction.
In addition to responding
to calls from students and
other University affiliates,
DPS also sponsors crime-
prevention programs
within the community.
DPS police officer
David Hawkins and
public safety officer
Paula Williams agreed#
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that DPS tries to take a community-awareness approach
to its crime prevention.
Williams said preventative measures such as the
Eyes and Ears program work to build a relationship
with employees who are familiar with their buildings
and who notice anything out of the ordinary in their
specific area.
)a._ W_,,rh a b,.ap thart of the T1]
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