TBI releases annual crime report on college campuses

The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation released its annual report on crime on college campuses.

The study looks at crime reported to the TBI from every college and university in the state in the 2016 school year until February 2017.

TBI spokesman Micheal Jones says many crimes were down in this year’s report from 2016.

“One of our major categories is our violent crime. It’s down 23 percent in a year. Surprisingly, one of the areas we had an uptick was in DUI’s. We had a 60 percent increase in DUI’s from last year to this year,” Jones said.

The report shows Jackson State Community College is just one campus in West Tennessee with a low crime rate. Leaders with the college say they have many security factors in place, including a campus police department and a “see something, say something” mindset.

“We try to get our employees, our students and our staff involved with, if they see something on campus, say something, so we can actually take care of it then before it becomes a problem,” said Darron Billings, director of Environmental Health and Safety and Jackson State.

Leaders with Jackson State say their number one priority is the safety of their students and staff.