Michelle Norton
Staff Writer
The University of Houston Police Department held its fourth annual National Night Out Tuesday to inform students, faculty and staff about safety and security in the workplace.
The events were part of a nationwide effort to reduce crime and build stronger communities. Sponsored by the National Association of Town Watch, the event is held the first Tuesday of every August and is celebrated with block parties, parades, cookouts and youth programs.
Last year's Night Out campaign involved citizens, law enforcement agencies, civic groups, businesses, neighborhood organizations and law officials from 9,000 communities in all 50 states, U.S. territories, Canadian cities and military bases worldwide.
In all, 30.5 million people participated in the events. More than 16 agencies participated in Houston alone, including the Houston Police Department, officers from the University of Texas medical school and the UHPD.
This year, the University of Houston hosted four events - two during the day and two at night. The first two, held at the Houston Science Center during the lunch hour, focused on key control, theft prevention and safety in the parking lots.
Participants learned how to keep themselves safe at all times by participating in the half-hour presentations. Clara Sparkman, a custodian for UH, said, "I came here because I wanted to learn about what is going on in the community and to meet people."
Participants also had access to a variety of free crime prevention literature discussing topics from keeping one's home safe to preventing criminals from gaining access to ATM and credit cards. In addition, several campus police officers were available for question-and-answer sessions.
Evening events were held between 7 and 9 p.m. in front of the University Center and in the Cougar Place breezeway. There, members of the UH community were given the opportunity to meet with UHPD representatives and with each other.
Lance Jones, a UHPD corporal and a speaker at the presentation, said the most frequent crime committed on campus is property theft. "Criminals can easily steal a person's books and get half price for them at Rother's or the campus bookstore," he explained.
Jones said the best way to prevent on-campus property theft is to keep to an eye on your bags and books and mark them with your name and Social Security number on a specific page in all the books.
Another problem campus officers face are suspicious people. Since UH is a public university, officers have no control over who can and cannot enter the campus. While they may have no way of telling whether someone is a criminal, officers can observe visitors' behavior alone.
Every day, 40 commissioned campus police officers are armed with the power of arrest. UHPD also houses an anti-crime unit specifically trained in plain-clothes surveillance. At least three officers are on duty 24 hours a day, seven days a week, year-round.
In addition to the police department, UH has formed a student organization called Cougar Patrol, which is designed to escort students anywhere on campus at night and to give jump starts.
The police and Cougar Patrol can be reached at (713) 743-0600.