University Police Chief George Hughes cited more on-campus activities for freshmen at night and increased enforcement by police as possible reasons for a declining trend of Week of Welcome arrest numbers.
Brooke Sperbeck
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University police arrested and cited 15 people during Week of Welcome 2013, University Police Chief George Hughes said, continuing a declining pattern in recent years.
Hughes confirmed the number of on- and off-campus arrests and citations that UPD made — separate from San Luis Obispo Police Department arrests — from Sept. 16 through Sept. 22 during move in and Week of Welcome:
- Public intoxication arrests: Eight, four who were Cal Poly students
- Minor in possession arrests: Three, one who was a Cal Poly student
- DUI arrests: One, who was not a Cal Poly student
- Public urination: Two, who both were Cal Poly students
- Open container: 1, who was a Cal Poly student
These numbers were lower than this past year’s WOW arrests, Hughes said. University police arrested and cited 80 in 2011 and 50 in 2010.
Possible reasons for this decline were more on-campus activities for freshmen at night and increased enforcement by UPD and the City of San Luis Obispo Police Department, Hughes said.
“I think that some individuals may have made different decisions because of the amount of police we had both on campus and also in the surrounding neighborhoods,” he said.
There were also five medical transports from campus for possible over-consumption of alcohol, all involving Cal Poly students, Hughes said.