Game-day crime down from previous years

10/23/2009

The Daily Toreador

By Allyson Schell

The game against Texas A&M on Saturday should not yield high crime rates if statistics from previous games this season hold up.

So far in the 2009 season, an average of two public intoxication arrests per game have been reported, which differs from the average of seven per game in 2007 and 10 per game in 2008. One consumption by a minor charge this season has been reported, down from 2007 and 2008 in which the average was one per game.

The highest number for public intoxication arrests in 2007 was 15 public intoxications for the game against University of Texas-El Paso and the lowest number of arrests was four during the Iowa State game. Public intoxication arrests in 2008 reached a high of 17 at both the Eastern Washington and University of Massachusetts games. The game against Baylor in 2008 had only two public intoxications, a number that represents the average for a typical game in 2009. 

“Arrests are on decline from the past couple of years,” said Col. Gordon Hoffman of the Texas Tech Police Department. “People must be getting the message through the grapevine to not go to the games intoxicated.”

Hoffman said he believes it also might be attributed to the AlcoholEdu course all freshman are required to take.

The Student Government Association also helps to lessen the game day crime numbers by having peer-on-peer guidance to help students make better decisions before entering the gates.

“We haven’t had to deter that many students,” said Sarah Saunders, SGA internal vice president. “Everyone seems more controlled this year.”

Tech police are stationed at all gate entrances and around the stadium to make sure students and non-students are abiding the law. Hoffman said they are not doing anything different this year to stem arrests, but fewer people are coming to the games drunk. 

“We are pleased this year to not be making so many arrests,” Hoffman said. “We hope that this trend will remain the same so then everyone can just relax and there will be less disturbances.”

As for the game on Saturday, Hoffman said he believes the trend will hold up.

“The A&M game will draw a lot of people,” he said, “but I’m not expecting a major surge in arrests. People just want to have a good time.”