The Madison Police Department has dealt with a drug bust, strong-armed robberies, battery incidents and downtown pipe-bomb threats — and those incidents only occurred in the past month.

The city's police department works tirelessly to ensure the safety of Madison residents, a large portion of whom are students.

"A lot of the people that are here on campus use a lot of [downtown] resources, but students — they're a big part of the landscape," Central District Captain Mary Schauf said.

Split into five districts, the Madison Police Department deals with both city and campus issues, according to Schauf.

The student body is familiar with city police, who patrol the bigger social events of the city, such as the Taste of Madison, Halloween weekend and the Mifflin Street Block Party.

The rest of the city has also seen its share of police intervention in the last year, Schauf added, as police have dealt with shootings at officers, two homicides and the St. Raphael's Cathedral arson fire, among others.

"For the district as a whole, it was a fairly busy year," she said. "There's just so much that goes on in Madison."

According to Schauf, the biggest cause of downtown incidents is alcohol, especially with the variety of bars in the area.

To prevent possible altercations, the department coordinates with campus police, Capitol Neighborhoods Inc. and the Policy, Alternatives, Community and Education Project.

CNI representative Jeff Erlanger said alcohol will always be an issue with crime downtown.

"You always are going to have problems on Friday and Saturday nights when everyone is out," he said. "The district is more flooded with people who want to go to the bars."

Schauf said heavy intoxication can lead to pedestrian-traffic accidents and robberies.

"You don't want to get so drunk that you can't take of yourself," she said. "When you're extremely intoxicated, you make yourself an easy victim for crime."

The downtown area is mostly filled with restaurants and bars, which Schauf says can lead to disturbances and crime.

"If you choose to go out at bar time, does the risk for crime and violence increase?" she asked. "Definitely."

Erlanger, president of the State Street and Langdon Street District, said the district is relatively quiet, but the incidents that do occur are alcohol-related.

"I know there are issues, but those are usually isolated and most likely related to alcohol," he said. "Those things have not changed over the years."

In downtown neighborhoods, by contrast, Schauf said burglary in student houses may often happen if residents do not take care of their homes.

"Students are notorious for leaving windows and doors open," she said. "What happens is that it creates an environment where people know there are easy targets."

Schauf said in a college town such as Madison, the department deals with the dual workload of campus and city.

"There's always a balance going on between what should be the primary focus," she said. "Would I like more resources? Of course … but overall, I don't think Madison is an unsafe place."