 "Photo: Natalie Carillo")
Homecoming festivities Saturday afternoon proved to be less eventful than in recent years, but crime increased after the sun went down, police said.
Cpl. Gerald Bryda of the Newark police said clearing the parking lots at the tailgate was the quickest it had ever been done because of the cooperation from city, county, state and university police.
Maj. Joel Ivory of the University Police said students, alumni and other patrons were cooperative in leaving the lot, and there were a minimum number of problems prior to the game resulting in two arrests.
“One person was arrested for disorderly conduct and an alcohol violation during the pre-game,” Ivory said. “And there was one person arrested inside the stadium for an open container of alcohol.”
The individual arrested for the open container was not a student, he said.
Ivory said someone reported their purse was stolen at the tailgate, and three students were referred to the Office of Student Conduct for alcohol violations and disorderly conduct.
“Those were pretty much the only criminal incidents that were reported to us, or that the officers came upon,” he said. “So that was pretty good, considering previous homecoming games.”
Ivory said he credits the smooth outcome to police walking through the lot before clearing time to explain to patrons that they would soon be asked to leave.
Another benefit was the presence of Newark County Police atop Clydesdale horses, Bryda said.
“When you have large crowds that need to be moved or might get disorderly, the horses are a great tool for crowd control,” he said. “Their size is powerful, and officers sitting atop them have a better view of the area.”
Joe Cavalier, who stayed until the end of the tailgate, said he noticed a few people being confronted but not about anything serious.
“There were cops all over the place,” Cavalier said. “Some people who were acting out were told to watch their behavior, but I didn’t see police going around checking IDs or anything.”
Senior Dan Borger said it was his first and last time attending the Homecoming tailgate, and he thought the atmosphere was a positive one.
“There were mud fights and beer everywhere, but I didn’t see any actual fights,” Borger said. “People were jolly and enjoying the festivities to the fullest.”
There are a number of factors that can be correlated with Homecoming being tamer this year, Bryda said.
Not only did the rainy weather assist police, he said, but that Halloween and the third game of the World Series were also on Saturday.
Bryda worked with a group of 10 to 15 officers that dealt with order maintenance surrounding the Homecoming game. Order maintenance, he said, includes disorderly conduct, fighting, open containers and underage drinking. There were no reports of anyone being tasered this year.
“I was assigned with a partner to respond during the football game to three complaints of loud parties,” Bryda said. “The hosts of every single party were absolutely respectful and complied with us telling them what the law was about with no questions asked and no problems.”
He said that city law allows one warning to be given for a noise complaint made during daytime hours, with the next complaint resulting in a ticket. It isn’t often that people comply, but everyone complied this year, he said.
“Homecoming was benign, to say the least, in terms of parties,” Bryda said. “It did pick up at nighttime, so maybe that was the reason why it wasn’t as bad this year. People might have had other things planned during the day.”
However, two major robberies occurred Halloween night, Bryda said in a separate statement.
At approximately 1:53 a.m. Sunday, Newark police received a call that a 20-year-old university student was the victim of an armed robbery on East Main Street near Farmers Lane across from the Newark Shopping Center.
There were three suspects involved, Bryda said. One pushed the victim to the ground, stood over her and, while displaying a black handgun, stole her purse and its contents.
The victim described all three suspects as wearing blue jeans and gray hooded sweatshirts with the hoods up. The suspects also wore light-colored masks, she said, which covered their faces from the eyes down.
The second robbery, Bryda said, occurred in the first block of South Chapel Street. Newark Police received a call at 1:13 a.m. about a burglary in progress. One victim, a female university student, told police she was asleep in her living room and awoke to an unknown man standing above her.
The victim said the suspect laid down next to her, so she immediately went up the stairs to find another one of her roommates, another female university student. Bryda said the suspect followed the victim up the stairs, where both victims told the man to leave.
Approximately 40 minutes later, the suspect re-entered the residence. The two victims locked themselves in a room and called 911. Bryda said the suspect was gone when officers arrived, and three laptop computers as well as cash had been stolen from the residence. The victims described the suspect as appearing to be intoxicated, Bryda said.
Crime after Homecoming festivities this year was not only an off-campus problem, Ivory said.
“On campus there were certainly some alcohol violations,” he said. “We had an assault that occurred at 1 o’clock or so in Smyth Hall that was alcohol related.”
University Police received reports Sunday about smashed windows in Warner Hall and Rodney Complex, Ivory said.
Bryda said Halloween is always a night of mischief.
“There’s an opportunity that is sought at Halloween night, with everyone wearing costumes going to parties and bars,” he said.
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