Common Sense: Your Guide to Safe Urban Living
Crime Information and Statistics
Information about campus security programs and policies and the incidence of crime is published in conformity with the requirements of the Student- Right-to-Know and Campus Security Act.
Campus Security Act
The Campus Security Act, a federal law, requires universities to report statistics regarding criminal activity on campus and in the neighboring area, as well as safety information, to the campus community. The definitions used for purposes of these reports are particular to the act and may not be consistent with those definitions used by other entities that collect crime information, such as the South East Chicago Commission (SECC) and local and campus newspapers. Reports of crime occurring in the neighborhood bounded by 47th and 61st Streets, Cottage Grove Avenue, and Lake Michigan are gathered by the SECC and other agencies and are published weekly in the Hyde Park Herald, a community newspaper. Parts of North Kenwood–Oakland will be included in these reports because of the Chicago City Council passage of an expansion of University Police coverage in that area as of fall 2003.
The act requires universities to report statistics for the three most recent years. The 2004, 2005, and 2006 statistics, reflected in Table 1, were gathered from University Police reports, Chicago Police Department reports, and from reports made by Campus Security Authorities. The University’s Campus Security Authorities for purposes of this report include: University Police, SECC, Deans of Students and their professional staffs, Deans-on-Call, Sexual Assault Deans-on-Call, academic advisers in all divisions, student organization advisers, University House System staff, Neighborhood Student Apartments managers, athletic coaches, sports club advisers, and visitor control attendants. A formal police report or investigation is not needed in order for a crime report to be included in the statistics.
In past years, the University collected crime statistics for the Gleacher Center (450 North Cityfront Plaza Drive, Chicago) and incorporated those statistics into Table 1. A separate chart for crime statistics associated with the Gleacher Center (see Table 2) commences with 2004. The statistics for the Gleacher Center were gathered from the Chicago Police Department and the University’s Campus Security Authorities.
In 2004, the University began to include its Center in Paris; and in 2007, the University began to include its London campus in all reporting required under the Campus Security Act. The University now communicates with the local police authorities in London, Paris, and Singapore, as well as with the University’s Campus Security Authorities, to determine whether there are any crimes reportable under the act. For 2006, the University did not receive any such reports from the local police or the University’s Campus Security Authorities. All participants in the centers in London, Paris, and Singapore are provided with safety and security information as part of their program orientation. Any questions can be addressed to Lewis Fortner at 773-702-4858 or Francisco Santamarina at 773-834-0906.
The act also requires reporting of not only arrests for liquor law, drug law, and illegal weapons violations, but also referrals for University disciplinary actions of both students and employees based on these violations (see Table 3). There were no arrests or disciplinary referrals for the Gleacher Center or for the centers in London, Paris, and Singapore in the 2006 reporting year.
A recent clarification in the act requires reporting of not only disciplinary referrals for students but referrals of employees. Therefore, the statistics as of 2002 reflect referrals of students and employees.
The Chicago Police Department maintains a list of registered sex offenders residing in the city of Chicago, pursuant to the Illinois Sex Offender and Child Murderer Community Notification Law (730 ILCS 152/101). This information can be located on the Web at http://12.17.79.4.
Analysis of Crime Statistics
2006 Calendar Year
The following report, prepared by the South East Chicago Commission, provides a statistical overview of reported violent crimes that occurred in the Hyde Park–South Kenwood community during calendar year 2006. Violent crime includes murder, aggravated criminal sexual assault, robbery, and aggravated assault and battery. For the purpose of this report, the boundaries of Hyde Park–South Kenwood are 47th Street to 61st Street and Cottage Grove Avenue to Lake Michigan.
This report also compares the crime rate in 2006 to rates in previous years and to other parts of the city of Chicago.
Trends in Hyde Park-South Kenwood over Time
In seven of the last ten years, violent crime in the Hyde Park–South Kenwood community has declined.
Last year, the incidence of violent crimes in the Hyde Park–South Kenwood neighborhood decreased by 25 percent from the previous year and was down 43 percent compared to 1996. The neighborhood recorded the lowest number of robberies since the SECC began collecting statistics in 1975. Robberies decreased by 29 percent from the previous year and were down 39 percent compared to 1996. Burglary, which is a property crime, increased by 12 percent compared to 2005 and was the only major category showing an increase. Total property crimes were down 14 percent from the previous year, and overall crime in Hyde Park declined by 16 percent compared to 2005.
Table 4 reflects crime trends in Hyde Park– South Kenwood over the past five years.
Rate of Crime in Hyde Park-South Kenwood and Elsewhere in Chicago
People often ask how the crime rate in the Hyde Park–South Kenwood community compares to other areas of the city. The Hyde Park–South Kenwood crime data reported in this account is gathered by the South East Chicago Commission based on a special analysis of police reports.
Figure 1 compares the rate of violent crime per 100,000 population in the Hyde Park– South Kenwood community to the city’s twenty-five police districts. One should use caution in making judgments based on this data. Crime rates can vary greatly within police districts and are affected by several factors, including the amount of commercial activity in a community and its daytime and evening visitor population. For example, the very low crime rate in the 16th Police District, located on the far northwest side of the city, is at least partly attributable to the low daytime population of the area.
Which of the city’s neighborhoods are the most reasonable comparisons to Hyde Park– South Kenwood? The South East Chicago Commission believes the most reasonable comparison is with the north lakefront communities. The north lakefront communities share with Hyde Park–South Kenwood a high degree of commercial activity and are homes to many members of the University community. The north lakefront communities are: East Chicago (18th District), Foster Avenue (20th District), Town Hall (23rd District), and Rogers Park (24th District). The rate of violent crime per 100,000 population in Hyde Park–South Kenwood has been close to average for this group in recent years. The crime rate in 2006 was somewhat higher in Hyde Park–South Kenwood than in the 20th, 23rd, and 24th Districts. The crime rate in Hyde Park–South Kenwood was somewhat lower than in the 18th District.
Chicago Police Districts
1. Central, 1718 S. State St.
2. Wentworth, 5101 S. Wentworth Ave.
3. Grand Crossing, 7040 S. Cottage Grove Ave.
4. South Chicago, 2255 E. 103rd St.
5. Calumet, 727 E. 111th St.
6. Gresham, 7808 S. Halsted St.
7. Englewood, 6120 S. Racine Ave.
8. Chicago Lawn, 3515 W. 63rd St.
9. Deering, 3501 S. Lowe Ave.
10. Marquette, 2259 S. Damen Ave.
11. Harrison, 3151 W. Harrison St.
12. Monroe, 100 S. Racine Ave.
13. Wood, 937 N. Wood St.
14. Shakespeare, 2150 N. California Ave.
15. Austin, 5327 W. Chicago Ave.
16. Jefferson Park, 5151 N. Milwaukee Ave.
17. Albany Park, 4461 N. Pulaski Rd.
18. Near North, 1160 N. Larrabee St.
19. Belmont, 2452 W. Belmont Ave.
20. Foster Avenue, 5200 N. Lincoln Ave.
21. Prairie, 300 E. 29th St.
(includes Hyde Park–South Kenwood)
22. Morgan Park, 1830 W. Monterey Ave.
23. Town Hall, 3600 N. Halsted St.
24. Rogers Park, 6464 N. Clark St.
25. Grand Central, 5555 W. Grand Ave.