Rising Crime; Are Students Safe on CSUB Campus Students and their families at California State University of Bakersfield (CSUB) are wondering if they are safe while on campus. According to the Bakersfield Crime Statistics Summary Report, the city of Bakersfield has been hit with an increase in both property offenses and violent crimes, averaging a murder investigation weekly. With the end of the fall quarter quickly approaching and days being shorter, students and families are asking if the university is doing enough to ensure the safety of everyone on the CSUB campus.
“Whether students are living on campus or are commuting, they should not have to be concerned with their on-campus safety in a setting where their main focus is to learn,” Dr. Horace Mitchell said in a statement. The CSUB president, also stated, “No environment is 100 percent safe…The hope is to minimize any incidents.”
The 2010 murder of 18-year-old Bianca Jackson was the first on-campus murder of the university’s 40-year history. In 2010, the university implemented an emergency alert system where students can subscribe to and receive alerts via e-mail, text, automated phone call, or an alert of their choosing regarding on or off-campus emergencies. Subscribers we informed of the 2010 murder.
“I park in the east parking lots of the campus and there are some parts that are almost completely pitch black,” said Tyler McDonald. McDonald, a senior at CSUB, later added, “If campus officers were to