[media-credit name=’RAY PFEIFFER/Herald photo’ align=’alignright’ width=’336′][/media-credit]Members of the Madison Police Department and University of Wisconsin staff held a Campus Safety Meeting Thursday to address circulating concerns across the community regarding the recent surge in area violence.

Dr. Elton Crim Jr., UW interim associate dean of students, said UW students tend to have certain assumptions about their safety in Madison, but with the recent crime trends, these assumptions need to change.

"Students would like to … be here, be able to go where they want to go, drink what they want to drink, get as drunk as they want to get, and be OK," Crim said. "I would say it's nice that you want that, but if you take that to the limit all the time, something might happen."

According to MPD officer Tony Fiore, who patrols the Langdon Street area, there has already been a change in attitude among the student population. With the new neighborhood watch program created by UW fraternities, he added, safety on campus is moving to a new level.

The Langdon Street neighborhood watch may also serve as a model for other communities surrounding campus, he said.

In addition, Fiore said students need to realize people looking to commit crimes look for easy targets, and intoxicated students who carry several valuables wherever they go fit that stereotype.

"In the time I've been in the [Langdon] neighborhood, the awareness and sensitivity to things going on around have increased dramatically," he said. "But at the same time, the number of people — both men and women — that have approached me and said, 'I'm scared to walk down Langdon Street,' bothers me."

UWPD Lt. Eric Holen said the steps to avoid becoming victimized in the downtown and campus areas are to avoid isolation, always keep open escape routes and always have the ability to summon help, whether it is by campus phones or by cell phone.

Yet Holen cautioned against relying only on a cell phone, since oftentimes, the first thing a suspect will take away is a means of communication.

Though police take partial responsibility for the safety of students, Holen said an important part of public safety is individual responsibility.

"It is really key that people understand that they are their own first line of defense," he said. "[The police] are a resource … but we really want to work with the victim population so they understand what the risks are and what they can do to help make themselves safe."

Kelly Arendt, Associated Students of Madison campus safety intern, said ASM is now working on its own initiative to work with both SAFE nighttime services and students to organize more neighborhood watches and to create a "Lightway Path." It is the job of the students, she added, to keep their own communities free of danger.

MPD officer Kraig Knutson said students need to understand that police are doing their best to keep students safe, but with more than 90 percent of weekend crime being alcohol related, that also means regular bar checks. Since over-consumption is such a major issue downtown, he added, it is something that targets victims.

"To avoid certain situations, we tell students to focus on those things you have some control over," Knutson said. "And alcohol is one thing people have control over."