Rash of Break-Ins At Kelly Quad Parking Lot

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The lot next to Kelly Quad. There have been several incidents here in the last few months.

By Amanda Mayo

Car vandalism has been taking its toll on people parking in Kelly Quad
throughout most of September and early October, according to police
records. The records show that between Sept. 8 and Oct. 5, there were at least 10 different incidents where cars were broken into, windows were smashed, and personal property was stolen from the small parking lot that sits close to the LIRR station.

The records show that speakers, a navigation system, and a CD were stolen from a vehicle through a broken window on Sept. 13. On Sept. 30, an iPod was taken from another vehicle that had its window shattered. Other records showed that more windows were broken and other vehicles damaged, but did not indicate whether any personal property was stolen.

Assistant Chief Doug Little of the University Police Department called
vandalism such as this “the coward’s crime” because the vandals see
an opportunity to quickly affect someone’s quality of life.

“Vandalism is one of those crimes that happens very quickly,” he said,
adding that sometimes victims don’t even report the crimes when they
happen because they feel that nothing can be done about them. “We want people to report it to us no matter what,” he said.

Little also mentioned that arrests have been made in the past for car
vandalism crimes in which high school students from surrounding communities were caught on campus.

Stephanie Brumsey, a resident assistant (RA) in Kelly Quad, said she hasn’t heard of any complaints about vandalism or stolen items from residents who park their cars in the Kelly lot. After hearing about the recent crimes, Brumsey said she would think twice about telling her residents and friends to park in that area.

“If anyone was to find themselves in this situation, I would recommend calling the police immediately and letting an RA in the building know what happened,” Brumsey said. “Sometimes we can help in other ways.”

Many other students, RAs and residence hall directors (RHDs) from Kelly Quad said they also haven’t heard about the recent crimes. One RHD who asked to remain anonymous said that there have been reports of broken glass, but that was all he heard about the situation. Even Kelly Quad’s Office Services Manager knew nothing about the thefts and vandalism.

Chief Little suggested that this might be a communication problem, and the surrounding community should be aware of the recent crimes and the potential for more. “We want to catch bad guys who commit crimes like this,” he said.

Although Little admits that most crimes like this happen so quick that they are hard to solve, thorough investigation is being conducted into the vandalism that occurred throughout September and early October. Little said whether it be police patrols, or plain-clothes investigation, the University Police Department is doing what they can to ensure that residents’ cars and personal property are safe. “There are some things you know, and there are some things you don’t know,” he said.