Shootings at Virginia Tech

Students at Virginia Tech were stunned to find themselves in the midst of another shooting on campus.  In 2007 Virginia Tech was the site of the worst shooting in U.S. history when a student named Seung-Hui Cho killed 32 and wounded 25 others before committing suicide.  Initial reports on this shooting indicate that the campus alert system functioned well.  The campus has reopened and final exams will begin on Saturday.  Sadly a campus police office lost his life in the shooting.  The Virginia Tech website includes information about the memorial fund established in the name of Officer Crouse.

Stories like this are appalling.  Just how safe are college campuses?  Campus crime statistics are available from the U.S. Department of Education at the Campus Safety and Security Data Analysis Cutting Tool.   Despite its somewhat unfortunate name, the site provides information on alleged criminal offenses reported to campus security authorities and/or local law enforcement agencies at over 6000 postsecondary institutions.  The report on Virginia Tech indicates that there was one murder between 2008 and 2010.