A publication of the Justice Center	Alaska Justice Statistical Analysis Center

See also:       > Campus crime         Abstract: University of Alaska Anchorage educational research sites are relatively free from serious crimes, according to 1991-1994 offense and arrest statistics compiled by the Justice Center. Under the Crime Awareness and Campus Security Act (CACSA) of 1990, institutions of higher education must prepare, publish, and distribute to students and employees an annual compilation of reported crimes and arrests which have occurred on a campus. This article presents statistics since 1991, when CACSA reporting at UAA was initiated.

     UAA educational and research sites are relatively free from serious crimes, according to 1991-1994 crime statistics compiled by the Justice Center. Under the Crime Awareness and Campus Security Act of 1990, institutions of higher education must prepare, publish and distribute to students and employees an annual compilation of reported crimes and arrests which have occurred on a campus. The act and its amendments require accurate compilation of the number of reports and arrests for murder, sex offenses, robberies, aggravated assaults, burglaries and motor vehicle thefts which occurred on campus. In addition, the numbers of arrests for liquor law violations, drug abuse violations and weapons possession violations on university property must also be reported. The Justice Center at the University of Alaska Anchorage compiles and publishes this annual report for UAA.

Calendar Year 1994

     No incidents of murder, sexual assault, or aggravated assault were reported on any UAA campus or educational site in 1994 (Table 1). Burglary was the most frequently reported offense with eight burglaries reported on the Goose Lake campus. Two motor vehicle thefts and two arsons were reported on the Goose Lake campus.
     Thirty-three arrests were reported for liquor law violations and seven arrests were reported for drug abuse violations on the Goose Lake campus. No arrests were reported for weapons law violations on the Goose Lake campus (Table 2).
     No offenses and no arrests were reported on any other UAA campus or educational site in 1994 (Table 2).

Review of 1991, 1992 and 1993

     In 1991, the first year of reporting mandated under the act, no incidents of murder, rape (changed to sexual offenses in 1992), or robbery were reported on any UAA campus or educational site. Six burglaries were reported on the Goose Lake campus, with one each reported at the Center for Human Development, the Downtown Center, and the Chugiak/Eagle River Extension. Two burglaries were reported at the Kenai Peninsula College campus.
     Five aggravated assaults, five motor vehicle thefts, and three arsons were reported on the Goose Lake campus (Table 1).

     Additionally, 25 arrests for liquor law violations were reported on the Goose Lake campus. No arrests were reported for liquor law violations on any other UAA campus or site. There were no arrests for drug abuse or weapons law violations reported on any UAA campus or site (Table 2).
     In 1992, no incidents of murder, sexual offenses, or arson were reported on any UAA campus or educational site. Seven burglaries were reported on the Goose Lake campus and one burglary was reported at the Adult Learning Center. Three aggravated assaults were reported on the Goose Lake campus, with one additional reported on the Kenai Peninsula College campus. Three motor vehicle thefts were reported on the Goose Lake campus, with one additional reported at the Center for Human Development and one reported on the Kenai Peninsula College campus (Table 1).
     In 1992, there were seven liquor law violation arrests, three drug abuse violation arrests, and no weapons law violation arrests reported for the Goose Lake campus. No arrests for liquor law, drug abuse, or weapons law violations were reported on any other UAA campus or site in 1992 (Table 2).
     In 1993, no incidents of murder or arson were reported on any UAA campus or educational site. Aggravated assault was the most frequently reported crime, with six on the Goose Lake campus. Five motor vehicle thefts were reported in 1993, three on the Goose Lake campus, one reported at the MAPTS site, and one reported on the Kenai Peninsula College campus. Three burglaries were reported on the Goose Lake campus, and one burglary was reported at the Adult Learning Center (Table 1). Two sexual offenses, both on the Goose Lake campus, were reported in 1993.
     Twelve arrests for liquor law violations, three arrests for drug abuse violations, and no arrests for weapons law violations were reported on the Goose Lake campus in 1993. No arrests for liquor law, drug abuse, or weapons law violations were reported on any other UAA campus or site in 1993 (Table 2).

Conclusions

     The University of Alaska Anchorage 1991-1994 crime statistics indicate that UAA educational and research sites are relatively free from serious crimes, although the levels of reported person crimes of sexual offenses and aggravated assaults, particularly in 1993, on the Goose Lake campus may be cause for concern. However, since no sexual offenses were reported in 1991, 1992, or 1994, 1993 was atypical.
     The property crime of burglary is more frequently reported than any other offense, and thus may be worthy of specific attention. Although perhaps not as serious as crimes against persons, burglaries may have significant financial impact on the victim, whether an individual or the university system. Burglaries may also be more preventable with physical security crime prevention techniques than person crimes.
     Reports of motor vehicle theft remained relatively constant from 1991 to 1993 and showed a significant decrease in 1994.
     Because a number of factors impact crime statistics (likelihood of individuals reporting, recording procedures, crime prevention measures employed, geographic location, population, demographic characteristics of the surrounding community, number of on-campus students, accessibility of outside visitors, etc.), and because of the smallness of the figures caution should be exercised in making comparisons between various locations and across years. The statistics on the reported offenses may best be used in focusing the selection and application of crime prevention measures on each campus.

     The preceding article is based on "Reported Crimes and Arrests, 1994: University of Alaska Anchorage," Justice Center, 1995. Copies of the entire report may be obtained from the Justice Center. Roger C. Miller is an instructor at the Justice Center; Cassie Atwell is a Justice Center research associate.