The total number of crime reports to Kansas University’s Public Safety Office dropped 10 percent in 2007, according to figures released Monday.

KU’s Public Safety Office received 664 reports in 2007, down from 737 reports the previous year and a more than 50 percent decrease from a decade ago. The office received a total of 1,479 reports in 1997.

KU Public Safety Capt. Schuyler Bailey said the office attributes the decline to several factors.

“It’s a combination – education, technology and a little hard work on our part,” Bailey said.

A camera system installed in 2005 monitors parking lots and public areas near all major residence halls.

Bailey said the office also has increased education efforts. KU Public Safety tries to send, among other messages, reminders to students not to leave their belongings unattended and not to walk alone at night.

In 2007, 237 thefts occurred within KU Public Safety’s jurisdiction, down from 295 the year before. The bulk of these were thefts from buildings. Reports of theft within the office’s jurisdiction have declined by nearly 60 percent in the last decade.

Similarly, reports of criminal damage have been sliding. Last year, 123 reports were made – down nearly 32 percent from five years ago and nearly 51 percent from a decade ago.

Reports of drug equipment and violations have not followed the same trends. The 41 reports of drugs in 2007 is up from a decade ago when there were 32 such reports. And the numbers have gone up and down from a low of 12 to a high of 45 reports in the years in between.

The 36 assaults reported in 2007 is up slightly from the 32 reports in 2006, but down dramatically from a decade ago when 74 assaults were reported.