A new Silent Witness program will allow Ball State students to anonymously report information about campus crimes to university police, Assistant Chief Bob Fey said.
"Some people may be hesitant to talk with police about suspicions or about their specific knowledge of criminal acts," he said. "The anonymity of Silent Witness may facilitate their communication with us."
The Web-based program, which began operation Wednesday morning, is available online through the University Police Department's site. The program is open to anyone who has tips about crimes currently under investigation or crimes that have not yet been reported.
"For example, the case involving the data projectors that have been stolen throughout campus over the past year and just within the past two months could benefit from this kind of investigative tool," Fey said.
Fey said the Web site allows users to provide information about the type of crime, time and location, descriptions of suspects and additional sources for contacts and information.
The program, however, is not to be used for reporting crimes in progress, reporting emergencies or filing formal police reports.
"The focus of this program is tips," Fey said.
Fey said university detectives will review Silent Witness tips Monday through Friday mornings.
"Should information come to us via the program, the detectives will then be able to connect it with an ongoing investigation or relate it to a case we don't already have on file," he said.
Fey said the police department would also pass on tips about a crime that occurred in another jurisdiction to the appropriate police agency.
Detective Vicki Johnson decided to launch the program after looking at other universities with similar Web sites and motivate the department to give it a try, Fey said.
Johnson said she found Notre Dame University, Ohio State University and Michigan State University had similar Web sites.
"The Silent Witness program affords people a method to communicate anonymously with us," she said. "We hope the program will be effective in the months and years to come."
Fey said Silent Witness might encourage students to report crimes that would otherwise go unreported.
The program is convenient and may prove effective, but time will tell, he said.
"We're hopeful that with the Web page, we will receive information that will help us to resolve unsolved crimes, or in some fashion, enhance safety and security at Ball State," Fey said.::26-¦P/??N_silent witness pg1_2/12/04DNEditorial::2SORT+â-Ü+â-ä2AUDT
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