Madalyn Warshawsky sat in a guarded position on a well-worn sofa in Clifton-Fullerton Hall with her back towards the hallway. A purse, school bag and textbooks closely encircled the 21-year-old public relations major as she typed on her laptop and kept watch over her belongings. As a transfer student from Indiana, Warshawsky is cautious of her surroundings.

“I wouldn’t leave my computer unattended,” Warshawsky said. “I always keep my things close.”

In the first five months of 2013, theft in Lincoln Park was down 20 percent as compared to the same period a year ago, and students like Warshawsky felt a little safer as the spring quarter came to an end.

There were 654 recorded thefts as of May 28. This number is significantly lower than the pervious year with thefts reaching 820, according to the City of Chicago data portal.

The most frequent type of theft in the area involved property valued at $500 and under. This type of theft was also the most popular last year, but with only 209 incidents in 2013, this year showed a 30 percent decrease. Among the lowest was purse snatching with only two recorded incidents this year on the data portal.

Supporting this trend, the monthly crime report compiled by the Chicago Police Department showed calls for service in the 18th district – between March 1 and April 30 – totaled 75 compared to 98 last year, according to the last CAPS/hospitality meeting posted on the Lincoln Park Chamber of Commerce website. But the reason for this drop still remains to be seen.

Bob Wachowski, the director of DePaul’s public safety, sees a similar trend with thefts, and attributes the decline to the installation of security cameras in high-theft areas such as the library. But even with a lower number of thefts, it remains the most predominant crime on the Lincoln Park Campus.

“The number one crime on campus is theft,” Wachowski said. “People leave stuff, and it’s easy to steal bikes. Nationwide, it’s thefts of the iPhone – and that’s every city.”

Theft falls under the category of larceny. As a private university, DePaul’s annual safety and security information report is not required to disclose these types of crimes under the Clery Act. Although it does not end up in the annual report, weekly campus crime data reports are posted on the public safety website for students to see, Wachowski said.

Wachowski also said the highest number of thefts is noted to occur during midterms and finals when students tend to focus more on studying than their surroundings. This creates the opportunity for property to be taken.

Theft both on and off campus is currently showing a favorable trend, but theft in the area historically tends to rise in June. For now, the threat of having one’s property stolen in Lincoln Park has waned, but Ariana Rakhshani, a 21-year-old journalism major, continues to doubt her safety outside of DePaul.

“I feel safer on campus,” Rakhshani said. “I think Lincoln Park is kind of sketchy.”