The Spectrum

Issue date: 12/8/05 Section: News

Media Credit: The Spectrum/ Elyse Harrell Taft has been the scene of two car break-ins in the past few weeks.

Four car break-ins in three weeks have students and Public Safety very concerned.

The first incident occurred in the early morning hours on Nov. 18, at Taft Commons, in front of Taft Avenue.

"I went out to my car around 11:30 a.m. on Friday and noticed that my right side passenger window was smashed; broken pieces of glass were everywhere around and inside the car," said Jaclyn Hull, junior, Seymour.

Hull, who parked her car upon returning home at 2 a.m., said that a Central High student told her the window was broken when he walked passed at 6 a.m. that morning on his way to school. That means that the vehicle was broken into during the hours that Public Safety was on duty.

"I think that it could have been an oversight by public safety," said Hull. "My car was parked right in front of where the public safety officer sits through the night until 6 a.m."

Hull said she is upset about her car, but she says she is more concerned with her own safety, and other Taft residents' as well.

"If my car cannot be safe when it is parked in the neighborhood that Sacred Heart designated for upperclassman housing, then how are students supposed to be safe living in such a neighborhood?" said Hull.

Another break-in occurred just ten days later at the same location. Kristin Ferreira, a Taft resident, awoke to the sound of her car alarm at 7 a.m. on Nov. 28.

"My heart sank because I knew it was my alarm," said Ferreira, junior, Cranston, R.I.

Ferreira ran outside to find her passenger side window smashed and her $600 car stereo missing, along with several Compact Discs.

The following night, Nov. 29 two more break-ins occurred in the small section of North lot located near the Jefferson Street exit.

One of the victims, Dario Melendez, a Spectrum reporter, had his $900 sound system stolen from his car, along with some cash that was in the glove compartment. Melendez was awakened at 2:30 a.m. when Public Safety arrived at his Jefferson Hill apartment to inform him of the break in.

"I'm very upset," said Melendez, sophomore, Boca Raton, F.L. "I received about $500 in parking tickets for parking in the J-Hill lot, but when I park in North lot, where I'm supposed to be, my car gets broken in to."

All of the students feel that there needs to be some kind of change in the security of the parking areas.

"There are officers patrolling all the lots as often as possible," said Jack Fernandez, Director of Public Safety. "In this case, the officer had patrolled the lot, checked the vehicles and found no damages. The officer attended to other duties, then returned and patrolled the same area again and found the break-ins."

Fernandez says that since these incidents have occurred, ublic Safety has increased the amount of patrols in North Lot, and assigned more officers to patrol the off campus residential facilities.

"We pay over $30,000 a year to go here," said Melendez. "The last thing I want think about is the security of my car. I lock it and from that point I expect the school to provide the rest."

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