The Daily Illini Long after most students have gone home for the summer, area police are still working to keep campus and surrounding towns safe. Activity for the Urbana Police Department actually increases in the summer, said Urbana Police Lt. Michael Cooper. Because students don't account for a particularly large amount of crime in Urbana, the absence of most students does not affect the amount of work police do during the summer. Police work increases because there is more activity in the summer.
People can get around easier than in the winter.
During the summer, Urbana police spend much of their time monitoring Fourth of July activities, picnics, fairs and carnivals. Generally, Urbana police do not conduct bar raids during the summer, though they typically raid bars six to 12 times during the school year, Cooper said. Champaign police were not available to comment on the number of bar raids they do during the summer. But like the Urbana police, Champaign police tend to be busier during the summer than during the school year because of more outdoor activities and people subletting apartments, said Champaign police Sgt. Unlike Champaign and Urbana police, University police, who are responsible for the campus, usually see a decline in activity during the summer.