Four years and over 200 professional standards later, the CSUN Police Department was accredited by the International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators.
Campus Chief of Police, Anne Glavin, said only five percent of law enforcement departments nationwide have received accreditation.
‘It was a four-year process where we had to meet 275 professional standards to receive accreditation,’ said Glavin who called it a big achievement for the police department.
The CSUN police department is equipped with 75 staff members and 27 police officers to serve the campus and the surrounding community of Northridge.
‘People always ask us what time are we going to close, but they don’t understand that we’re always open,’ said Christina Villalobos, public information officer. ‘The administration offices like the parking services close at regular business hours, but the police dispatch is available 24 hours a day.’
Along with the 27 police officers, CSUN police have specialized teams, such as the K-9 and motorized units.
‘Right now we have three dogs, but two of them will be retiring,’ Villalobos said.
The K-9 unit was formed in 2005 mainly to find explosive devices around campus, according to their Web site, but expanded in 2007 to include tracking and suspect apprehension.
While CSUN’s police first priority is to keep the campus safe, it also has an over-lapping jurisdiction with the Los Angeles Police Department’s Devonshire division within a one-mile radius around school grounds.
‘It’s not unusual to see them doing a routine traffic stop on Reseda, Nordhoff or Lindley,’ Villalobos said. ‘However the campus is their first priority.’
One of the recent additions to the CSUN police building has been the crime lab, which has been a convenience to the staff.
‘We have a crime lab now where we can process the evidence collected by the officers faster, rather than sending it out and waiting for the results,’ said Villalobos.
There is also a holding facility in the new building where people are brought in, no matter how big or small the crime is at the given time.
‘The holding facility is not for overnight accommodations, but people can be brought in for booking here but are then sent to the LAPD,’ Villalobos said.
Crime around campus usually goes through patterns, they rise and fall at different times of the year, she said.
Although there haven’t been any major crimes within the CSUN community, there’s been a great number of bicycle thefts.
‘Right now we have had a surge of bicycle thefts,’ said Villalobos.
‘I have had my bike stolen before,’ said Brennan Ebaugh a freshman screenwriting major.’ ‘The lock was smashed and the bike was gone.’
Ebaugh said he didn’t bother to report his bike was stolen because he figured the police wouldn’t be able to do anything about it.
‘We would send out a crime alert bulletin about the bicycle thefts to notify the community of what is happening,’ said Villalobos.
Students can register their bicycle for free by bringing it to University Park Apartments Building 14, Room 105. This will improve their chances of getting their bicycle back if it’s ever stolen, according the CSUN Web site.
For valuable items such as iPods or laptops, students can register their property in the anti-theft S.T.O.P. program for a $10 fee.
CSUN also provides personal safety escorts through the Matador Patrol, which escorts students to their car or anywhere on campus.
‘We get about 80 to 100 calls a day regarding personal safety escorts,’ said Capitan Scott VanScoy.
Personal safety escorts are available to all students from dusk to 11 pm, Monday through Thursday.’ Students can call (818) 677-5042 or 5048.
There is also a course specifically designed for women called R.A.D. (rape, aggression, and defense) that provides self-defense tactics and techniques.’ More information can be found through the CSUN police Web site at www-admn.csun.edu/police/rad/index.htm.
If students dial 9-1-1 on their cell phones, their call will be routed to Highway Patrol, instead they can instead dial (818) 677-2111 and be directly connected to the University Police Dispatch.’ Students can also use the emergency blue light phones (or TTY-enabled call boxes) to get in direct touch with campus police.’ These call boxes are found all over campus and will take any type of emergency be it crime, medical or fire.
To find more information on CSUN police, recent crime activity around campus or more safety tips visit, http://www-admn.csun.edu/police/.
