Duke in Pics: Police Officers Share Safety Tips

Duke Police crime prevention officer Eric Hester, right, shared the "5 W's" rule Thursday afternoon with students, who stopped by a table in the Bryan Center entrance to meet officers and grab cookies and safety information cards.

As part of his "5 W's" lesson, Hester suggested students keep the following in mind to assist investigating officers when contacting police in an emergency: "Students should remember to mention specific information: Where are you. What's going on. When it happened. Who's involved, and is there a weapon involved."

This was the third "Tips n' Treats" meet-and-greet hosted by Duke Police this week, when officers interacted with students, staff and faculty and shared crime prevention tips and answered questions. Police also met with community members at East Union on Monday and The Food Factory on Central Campus on Wednesday.

Duke public policy first-year students Sai Panguluri and Autumn Carter stopped in front of the blue table at the Bryan Center around lunchtime Thursday after finishing a midterm, grabbed cookies and listened to Hester's advice.

"When we are on campus all the time, you see the officers, the security guards and the police cars driving around," Panguluri said.

Carter said the in-person interactions show that Duke's police officers care about her safety.

"It's a smart thing to do," Carter said. "Everyone comes through here quite often. It shows they're even more willing to reach out to us."

Find tips on personal and property safety on the Duke Police website.