Emory’s annual Clery Report, released via a University-wide email on Dec. 21, indicated increases in stalking, arson and liquor law violation referrals on Emory’s Atlanta campus in 2019. On Emory’s Oxford campus, drug law violation referrals rose while rape and alcohol law violation referrals decreased.
The security and fire safety report is a requirement for all institutions participating in federal financial aid assistance programs and contains data collected by the Emory Police Department and Campus Life from the last three years. Normally the report is filed by Oct. 1, but the filing deadline was extended to Dec. 31 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to the report, cases of stalking increased to 21 on the Atlanta campus in 2019, a 110% increase from 2018.
Reported rapes on Emory’s Atlanta campus increased to 14 in 2019, up from 12 in 2018 and nine in 2017. On Emory’s Oxford campus, reported rapes decreased from three in 2018 to one in 2019.
“The increase in reported incidents has been driven, at least in part, by the University’s outreach efforts,” Assistant Vice President of Communications and Public Affairs Laura Diamond wrote in a Dec. 23 email to the Wheel. “Still, we know some students do not report incidents of sexual violence and there is more work to be done in this area.”
Diamond noted that Emory’s Department of Title IX offers multiple resources to address sexual violence and misconduct.
In 2019, there were two arson offenses on Emory’s Atlanta campus, the first time since 2015 of any such reports.
At Woodruff Residential Center, a towel was set on fire in a trash can, resulting in up to $99 in property damages.
Disciplinary referrals for liquor law violations on the Atlanta campus jumped from 142 in 2017 and 165 in 2018 to 196 in 2019. At Oxford, referrals fell from 46 in 2018 to 39 in 2019.
According to Diamond, an increase in the number of undergraduate students on the Atlanta campus in 2019 contributed to the rise in liquor law violation referrals.
Disciplinary referrals for drug law violations on Oxford’s campus leaped to 10 in 2019, a 400% increase from 2018. On the Atlanta campus, referrals slightly rose from 19 to 21 within a year.
Drug law arrests and burglaries on the Atlanta campus sunk to 10 and 18 in 2019, respectively, down from 17 arrests and 30 burglaries in 2018.
“The Emory Police Department initiated a new predictive analytics program that allows patrol managers to adjust staffing to deter crime,” Diamond wrote. “In addition, EPD amplified its ‘See Something, Say Something’ campaign which encourages all community members to be aware of their surroundings and report any suspicious activity.”
