Wednesday, October 14, 2009
More crimes happen in the area known as the “student ghetto” than in any other residential area in Lawrence, according to police statistics.
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To give readers a better idea of the type of crimes that can occur in the “student ghetto” on a standard weekend, all the police reports filed in this area, including the easternmost part of campus, for the weekend from Thursday, Oct. 1 to Sunday, Oct. 4, are being included. For the purpose of this story, the “student ghetto” area includes the areas of 11th to 19th streets between Louisiana and Massachusetts streets. All suspects are presumed innocent until proven guilty in court. All of the suspects mentioned below were contacted and given the opportunity to speak on their own behalf. All information was provided by official police reports from the Lawrence Police Department and KU Public Safety Office, unless otherwise noted.
Thursday, Oct. 1
Location: near 14th and Ohio streets
Time of report: 12:33 a.m.
Crime reported: Battery
Victim: 21-year-old male University student
Offender suspected of using alcohol
Location: near 11th and Massachusetts streets
Time of report: 1:35 a.m.
Crime reported: Aggravated battery by knife or cutting instrument
Victim: 23-year-old male University student
Offender suspected of using alcohol
Location: near 11th and Louisiana streets
Time of report: 6:41 a.m.
Crime reported: Disorderly conduct
Victims: Two 19-year-old female University students
Offender suspected of using alcohol
Location: near 18th and Louisiana streets
Time of report: 9:27 a.m.
Crimes reported: Auto burglary, theft and criminal damage to property
Victim: 81-year-old Lawrence woman
Friday, Oct. 2
Location: near 13th and Ohio streets
Time of report: 1:18 a.m.
Crimes reported: Criminal trespassing, disorderly conduct and possession of a fake driver’s license
Victims: 21-year-old Lawrence man, an 18-year-old Lawrence woman and a 21-year-old Lawrence woman
Offender suspected of using alcohol.
A 21-year-old Lawrence man named Jason, who wishes to be identified by his first name only, said he was preparing to go to bed in his upstairs bedroom when his girlfriend entered the room and asked about the unfamiliar person who had just walked into the home.
“She had just woken up and asked, ‘Who’s your friend downstairs in the bathroom?’” Jason said.
Jason’s said his girlfriend immediately became concerned when he informed her he wasn’t expecting any visitors. Jason said his door was unlocked for a roommate who was about to return from work.
Jason said he entered a downstairs bathroom where he found an intoxicated college-aged man standing near the vomit-covered sink, toilet and walls. He said the man had even removed some clothing and appeared to be preparing to take a shower.
Jason said he then sat the man on a couch and tried to find out who the person was and why he was in his apartment.
“He was belligerent drunk, so it was hard to understand him,” Jason said.
Jason’s girlfriend called the police, who arrived at 1:23 a.m., while the man was still in the home. Police arrested the 18-year-old University student on suspicion of charges for criminal trespassing and disorderly conduct.
“The cop said to me, ‘You’d be surprised how much this happens, it happens all the time,’” Jason said.
Jason said he had noticed quite a few alcohol-related crimes in his neighborhood, but they were mostly non-violent crimes to property such as broken beer bottles and other items.
Location: near the intersection of Jayhawk Boulevard and Sunflower Road
Time of report: 2:32 a.m.
Crimes reported: Battery and possession of a fake driver’s license
Victims: 21-year-old male University student
Offender suspected of using alcohol.
A University senior named Michael, who wished to be identified by his first name only, said he was walking home by himself after a night of drinking at The Wheel when an unfamiliar college-aged man started giving him trouble near the top of the hill by 14th Street and Jayhawk Boulevard.
Although Michael had been drinking that night, he said his memory of the event was pretty clear. He remembers the man acting disagreeably and arguing with him as they walked, possibly demanding a piece of pizza Michael was eating.
“If I remember correctly, I think it might have started because of that piece of pizza,” Michael said.
He said he tried to ignore the stranger, but the disagreement became physical in the area near the entrance to Watson Library.
“I just remember him shoving me down to the ground and us struggling for a few seconds, and next thing I look up and see police lights,” Michael said.
KU police arrested a 20-year-old student on suspicion of charges of battery and possession of a fake driver’s license.
Jason said he suffered only minor injuries during the incident, including a sore face, swollen elbow and minor scrapes.
Saturday, Oct. 3
Location: near 11th and Kentucky streets
Time of report: 3:22 a.m.
Crimes reported: Criminal trespassing and disorderly conduct
Victim: 40-year-old Lawrence woman
Offender suspected of using alcohol, according to the victim.
A 40-year-old Lawrence woman, who wished to remain nameless, said she was sleeping in her bedroom when she was woken up by the sound of her front door slamming. She was immediately worried, the woman said, because she remembered her front door was unlocked.
Before she could leave the room to see about the sound, the woman said a college-aged man walked into her bedroom and stared at her for a few moments before entering a nearby bathroom.
The woman said she began yelling at the man, telling him to leave, but he refused. She said the man became aggressive, cursing at the her and insisting she was a friend of the person he was looking for.
“He was obviously intoxicated,” she said. “Even the cops said so.”
The woman said she was finally able to get the man to leave her apartment, but he soon began banging on her door, screaming at her to let him back in. The woman immediately called police.
She said the man then began banging on other apartment doors, even trying their handles to see if any of them were also unlocked.
Police arrived at the apartment complex at 3:23 a.m. and arrested a 21-year-old University student on suspicion of charges of criminal trespassing and disorderly conduct.
The woman said she had not noticed many crimes in her neighborhood in the past, but did see plenty of drunken people in the area, especially on weekends.
Location: Facilities Operations Main Building, campus
Time of report: 4:20 a.m.
Crimes reported: Criminal damage and interference with police duties
Offender suspected of using alcohol.
Location: Corbin Hall
Time of report: 8:26 a.m.
Crime reported: Attempted criminal trespass
Location: near 11th and Tennessee streets
Time of report: 9:52 a.m.
Crimes reported: Criminal threat, disorderly conduct
Victim: 19-year-old Lawrence woman
Offender suspected of using alcohol.
Sunday, Oct. 4
Location: near 11th and Massachusetts Streets
Time of report: 2:24 a.m.
Crime reported: Disorderly conduct
Victims: 31-year-old Lawrence woman and a 32-year-old Lawrence woman
Offender suspected of using alcohol.
— Edited by Samantha Foster
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Comments
georgekaplan (anonymous) says...
How many of these incidents DIDN'T involve alcohol? Not a one of them ends with "offender suspected of smoking marijuana". But alcohol is the one that is legal and ubiquitous. To quote Homer Simpson, "Alcohol! The cause of, and solution to all of life's problems!"
October 14, 2009 at 8:38 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
redcoalcarpet (anonymous) says...
True but prolonged use of weed turns your brain to mush and dumbs a person down. I can spot a stoner a mile away!
October 14, 2009 at 2:03 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )