LSU Police Department released its 2026 Annual Security and Fire Safety Report, providing the community with crime statistics from 2025 and previous years.
The Clery Act requires all colleges and universities to disclose information about reported crime on and around their campuses each year by Oct. 1. The law is intended to provide students and the public with information about campus crime and safety.
The act was passed following the rape and murder of Jeanne Clery in 1986 at Lehigh University. Her parents advocated for college campus crime statistics to be readily available for the community to access.
LSU complies with this federal law by releasing its Annual Security and Fire Safety Report, which includes crime statistics from the previous three years as well as information about campus safety policies and crime prevention. This allows the community to compare data, showing data up to two years prior.
LSUPD Sgt Marlon Hawkins said the report gives students and the public a transparent look at reported crime on campus. Hawkins added the report helps the LSU community better understand the safety resources available and helps LSUPD identify areas where it can continue focusing on education, prevention and safety.
One type of crime LSUPD is monitoring is motor vehicle theft. The report shows that motor vehicle theft has more than tripled this year since 2023. In 2025, 218 motor vehicle thefts were reported, compared with 121 incidents in 2024 and 68 incidents in 2023.
Hawkins said that the motor vehicle theft category includes more than cars. Under Clery reporting, self-propelled and electric scooters are considered motor vehicles. As scooters have become more common on campus, Hawkins said securing them properly has become an important part of LSUPD’s crime prevention messaging.
Additionally, liquor law arrests have also increased in 2025. The report shows 59 liquor law arrests in 2023, 31 in 2024 and 139 in 2025.
A liquor law violation means the offender was in violation of any Louisiana law prohibiting the manufacture, sale or possession of intoxicating liquor. Violations can also be issued for maintaining unlawful drinking spaces, selling liquor to a minor or drinking in public conveyance, according to the 2025 report.
Hawkins said liquor law violation arrests can be influenced by enforcement activity, special events and the types of contacts officers have throughout the year. An increase in offenses does not necessarily mean alcohol use increased at the same rate, he said, but it does show that officers had significantly more liquor law enforcement activity in 2025.
There was also a spike in on-campus drug law arrests, with 62 reported in 2025 compared to the 29 reported in 2024.
The increase of these incidents has raised concerns about campus safety for some LSU families. LSU alumna Jenifer Leonard said the statistics in the report have made her weary about sending her son to her alma mater.
“I’m disturbed at the increase of motor vehicle theft and liquor law arrests,” Leonard said. “What I’ve seen and heard about campus since last year has been eye opening, and not in a good way.”
While motor vehicle theft and liquor law arrests on campus increased, burglary reports decreased from 53 in 2023 to 19 in 2025. According to the report, burglary is defined as the unlawful entry, or attempted unlawful entry, of a structure to commit a felony or a theft.
“We are encouraged by that decrease,” Hawkins said. “There’s rarely one single reason behind a change like that, but patrol presence, security measures, crime-prevention efforts and our community taking steps to secure their rooms and property all help reduce opportunities for burglary.”
Dating violence, or battery of a dating partner, and stalking offenses also decreased from previous years. Dating violence decreased from 30 reports to 18, and stalking from 45 reports to 37, since 2024.
LSUPD encourages students to report incidents by calling LSUPD at 225-578-3231 or using the LSU Shield mobile safety app.
“The biggest takeaway should be awareness,” Hawkins said. “The statistics help us identify trends, but keeping campus safe is something we all play a role in.”
Source: lsureveille.com
