Department of Public Safety serves the campus 24/7

Department of Public Safety serves the campus 24/7

Public Safety is located at 413 Academy St.

Police Officer Keita Bowles using a mobile data computer

The main office of the Department of Public Safety, located at 413 Academy St., is open 24/7. The well-being of all who attend, work or visit the University of Delaware is vitally important to UD's Department of Public Safety.

While Newark is a relatively safe place, crimes do occur both on and off the campus. University Police officers are trained to understand the needs of students, faculty and staff. Equipped with two-way radios, they patrol the campus by vehicle, foot and bicycle. Public Safety security officers and student police aides assist the University Police in their preventive patrols.

"The safety and security of the University community is a shared responsibility between members of the community and the Department of Public Safety," Lawrence O. Thornton Jr., chief and director of Public Safety, said. "We provide programs and services to facilitate the safety of all who attend, work for or visit the University of Delaware. However, individuals also have a responsibility to exercise due care and to avoid dangerous situations. We also feel that a well-informed community can be a safer community, and we are committed to keeping the campus informed of crimes that occur on and near campus."

University Police officers are law enforcement officers of the state of Delaware and are certified by the Delaware Council on Police Training. They have full investigative and arrest authority on campus, as well as on contiguous streets and highways and elsewhere in the state, as provided by law. A criminal or traffic summons issued by a University Police officer will be adjudicated by the court system of the city of Newark or the state of Delaware, as appropriate.

University Police also work closely with federal, state, county and municipal law enforcement agencies to provide the best possible service. All members of the Department of Public Safety are empowered to enforce University rules and regulations.

The men and women of UD's Department of Public Safety are professionally trained to provide police, security and parking services for the campus community.

Public Safety has 47 sworn police officers, all academy trained and certified by the Delaware Council on Police Training. In addition, each officer attends more than 40 hours of additional training each year to insure that certifications are kept up to date.

The ever-changing requirements for providing top-quality safety and security services necessitates hiring the best qualified employees and providing them with superior training and equipment. To this end, Thornton said, the Department of Public Safety is committed to employing a diverse workforce and providing them with training to meet the unique needs of a campus environment.

"Keeping pace with changes in technology is a priority," Thornton said, "and several members of the department have been recognized for their expertise by their colleagues in the greater law enforcement community."

UD's Police Department took the lead in providing AEDs--[Automatic External Defibrillation Units], which increase the chance for survival for persons in cardiac arrest--for each police vehicle several years before required by the state. The installation of mobile data computers in campus police vehicles has just been completed, and these will assist officers in gathering information and writing reports.

Public Safety staff members also are trained in victim services and cultural diversity.

"Specialized training in these areas," Thornton said, "translates into courtesy, professionalism and respect for themselves and the community they serve."

Additionally, several UD officers have attended the FBI Law Enforcement Executive Development School, the Leadership Development School and three have graduated from the FBI National Academy.

Other UD officers are certified instructors in such areas as CPR, defensive tactics, computer forensics, defensive driving and rape aggression defense (RAD).

Twenty-six UD officers have college degrees (four with master's, 20 with bachelor's and two with associate's), while 10 others have accumulated more than 60 college credits each.