The University of Oregon police responded to 196 crimes in April, clery log reports show.

This April looked like a typical spring month, UOPD spokesperson Kelly McIver said. That meant a slight uptick in bike thefts and a spate of criminal mischief.

Total reports decreased by 21 percent this April compared in April 2018, but McIver said the UOPD didn’t see that as a trend. “It’s not really a major statistical shift,” he said. “The overall numbers are low enough that they can largely be ascribed to anomalies.”

Slightly under half the reported crimes in April, 88 of them, were low-level drug and alcohol violations that were reported by the Office of the Dean of Students in April but actually took place during winter term. The number of drug and alcohol referrals reported in April decreased by 40 percent from 2018 to 2019, when there were 145 drug and alcohol violations reported that month.

A bias crime of intimidation was reported at the Alpha Epsilon Pi house, a Jewish fraternity at UO, at the beginning of April. McIver said someone was yelling “racially-motivated epithets at the house.” AEPi was suspended for hazing in mid-April, but McIver stressed the incidents were totally separate.

Two sexual assault cases were reported to the UOPD in April, though they both occurred off-campus last year. Those cases remain open.

There were 39 theft-related crimes reported in last month, including bike theft, shoplifting at the Duck Store and Hirons and possession of burglary tools. At Spencer View Apartments, there were two reports of burglary and three reports of theft; all five cases were closed without an arrest due to a lack of suspects.

Arrests decreased by 46 percent this April compared to last April, from 35 down to 19. The majority of those arrests, 16 of them, were warrants. McIver said UOPD officers try to use discretion when arresting people because of the time it takes for booking when a person isn’t dangerous. “It takes them off the patrol beat for a few hours,” he said.

UOPD made one arrest for driving under the influence in April, made as part of a dedicated patrol paid for by an ongoing federal grant. That’s down from six arrests in April 2018. McIver wasn’t sure why, though he noted April doesn’t have any popular drinking holidays. “People don’t go out and get hammered for Easter,” McIver said. “We’ll see what happens around Cinco de Mayo.”

Universities and colleges that receive any federal money must keep a daily log of crimes reported in their jurisdiction in accordance with the 1998 Jeanne Clery Act. According to the UOPD website, the UOPD posts its log online and at the UOPD station every Monday, Wednesday and Friday.