[media-credit name=’Herald file photo’ align=’alignnone’ width=’648′][/media-credit]Madison police are urging the city’s Alcohol License Review Committee to restrict the number of liquor licenses downtown. Following a recent study, the Madison Police Department found a direct correlation between the number of liquor licenses and the rate of crime in Madison’s central district.

The MPD says a reduction in the number of liquor licenses downtown would decrease crime, violence and disturbance in the area.

The number of incidents in Madison’s central district far outweighs the number of incidents in any other district, according to Capt. Mary Schauf. Officers are particularly concerned with Sector 403, which includes State Street and much of the southeastern area of the University of Wisconsin campus. This high-density food and drink area is heavily trafficked on weekend nights by students, partygoers and visitors.

“Sector 403 is the black hole of the central district when it comes to crime,” MPD Capt. Mary Shauf said.

The large presence of bars and liquor stores, coupled with young peoples’ tendency to drink heavily can be linked to the high density of crime in that area, she added.

“The vast majority of the crime in sector 403 is related to alcohol,” Shauf said. “Crime in that area spikes at midnight and at bartime, particularly on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights.”

UW students have been the subject of violence in this area on weekends, but UW senior Sam Boebel said this does not keep him from frequenting bars on the weekends.

“Whenever I go out on weekends, I always go out with a group of friends,” Boebel said. “When the night is over, I always go home with a group of people.”

Boebel said the last thing he wants to have happen on the weekends is for him or one of his friends to fall victim to a crime because they were left alone.

“You hear stories about people who get too drunk and wander off from bars without telling anyone where they’re going,” Boebel said. “When someone gets drunk like that, they tend to get lost. Often, they’ll turn up at home and just won’t remember how they ended up there … someone who is alone is a more likely target for crime than someone with a group.”

The MPD is also recommending the penalties for distributing alcohol without a permit increase. They hope this will discourage an increase in the number of house parties, a focus that remains high for not only police but also members of the Policies, Alternatives, Community and Education organization on campus.

UW senior Joe Steele said he agrees with the police that crime in the nearby campus area is frequent, but added he has doubts restricting the number of liquor licenses will curb crime rates.

“Kids are going to drink no matter what,” Steele said. “Drunk kids will still be targets for crime and drunk people will still commit crimes downtown. As long as the alcohol is flowing, the crime most certainly will not be slowing.”