Annie Le wrote about how to prevent becoming campus crime victim

Annie Le, the Yale graduate student who disappeared days before her planned wedding to a Long Island man, authored a student magazine story on how to avoid being a campus crime victim.

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"Most students are all too familiar with e-mails with the subject: 'Message from Chief Perrotti' detailing the latest robbery," Le wrote in the February B Magazine story, titled "Crime and Safety in New Haven." She was referring to the James Perrotti, the Yale police chief who now leads the search for the missing 24-year-old researcher.

"What can one do to avoid becoming another unnamed victim in these e-mails?" Le wrote.

Yale sees far more serious crimes than other nearby schools such as Quinnipiac University and Southern Connecticut State University - which is further from New Haven's downtown, Le said.

Using thefts as an indicator, in 2006 Columbia University had about the same number of thefts - though Columbia's urban campus has a far larger student enrollment, she said. The University of Pennsylvania, also an urban campus, had only 53 thefts though it has twice Yale's enrollment, she said.

From Le's magazine article it is not possible to tell whether she is referring to larcenies, robberies, or both.

"Such numbers do not bode well for Yale," Le's article said. "According to CNN Money Magazine, the City of New Haven has 7 times as much personal crime compared to the average for 'safe' cities in the United States."

In spite of door-to-door escort and shuttle services, Le wrote, "the Yale community is still plagued with thefts, some involving frightening confrontations."

For the article Le interviewed the campus police chief to talk about crime, and he told her the department had increased its late-night patrols. Perrotti offered some tips for keeping safe: Pay attention to where you are. Don't act as if you are a potential victim. Do not be distracted by iPods and phone calls. And "reduce your exposure (use the Yale escort and shuttle services)... (and) walk with a purpose."

Chief Perrotti's final point was that "crime prevention is nothing more than recognizing a risk and taking steps to prevent it."

He added, "in short, New Haven is a city, and all cities have their perils, but with a little street smarts, one can avoid becoming yet another statistic."

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