Serving the students of the University of North Carolina Asheville since 1982
Volume VI, Number III Thursday, February 7,1985
Purse snatchings
plague campus
By Penny Kramp
rA
TOO NEVER FOBGET YOUR
msr BWPER. Sarah Sisk,
18 aantlis, finds the
limner anosliig.
Staff photo by Sylvia Hawkins
New library
put on hold
Just a couple of minutes
Is all the time it took
for Kathe' Davenport to
answer the phone. When she
returned to her Swain dorm
room she couldn’t find her
purse. Two hours later it
was found in a neighbor’s
shower—minus her $4.
Joy Nichols fell asleep
last Wednesday afternoon
and awoke to find her
purse missing. A friend
found it in a clothes
dryer in Aycock dorm.
Kim Clontz visited her
neighbors across the hall
from her Hi^rise dorm
room last Tuesday. She
glanced out and saw a man
leaving her room.
A few hours later a
shopper found Clontz*s
wallet in a bathroom in
Wbolworth’s on Haywood
Street. She lost $10 and a
blank check.
These are just three in
cidents of a crime which
is quickly becoming a cam
pus epidemic.
UNCA Department of Secu
rity and Services reported
six purse thefts in Janua-
Several common threads
connect the crines:
.an unlocked door
.a woman's purse or
wallet
.dunqped evidence
.the description of the
suspect.
Charles Carreno, direc
tor of UNCA security and
services , described the
suspect as a tall (6'),
slender black male in his
early 20*s.
^niold Jones, security
officer, said it is doubt
ful a UNCA student is com
mitting the thefts.
"I'm quite sure if it
was a stiident spaeone
would recognize him,’* said
Jones.
"It is hard to say if it
is the same person. It
could be friends working
together," said Carreno.
Carreno said careless
ness is the main cause of
the problem.
"There has been no
forced entry into anyone’s
room or desk. The trend
seems to be to walk
through buildings, see an
unlocked door, grab the
purse, and nin," said
Carreno.
Unless there is physical
evidence, or the person is
caught in the act, securi
ty cannot make arrest,
according to Carreno.
"Nine out of 10 times
the woman is not interest-
back," said Carreno.
OfFLCR THSnS
Phyllis Hutchins got her
money back—by taking mat
ters into her own hands.
Hutchins, UNCA universi
ty relations receptionist,
left her office on the se
cond floor of Lipinsliy for
a couple of minutes Jan.
9.
When she returned a
"tall, slender black fel
low in a bright blue jack
et" emerged fran her of
fice.
"He asked for the math
department and went on. I
thought it was weird so I
looked in ny purse which I
kept under ny desk, and my
wallet was gone," said
Hutchins.
"I can’t describe the
feeling that overcame me.
I was so furious that I
ran out in the hall. When
he saw me he began running
and I did too," said
Hatchins.
The thief ran down the
steps so Hutchins "kicked
off" her high heels and
continued the chase.
"I never thought about
the danger. All I could
think about was ny credit
cards and pictures that I
could never replace," said
Hutchins.
She finally cornered him
downstairs in the music
department and demanded he
return her wallet.
"At first he denied hav
ing it but then he began
pulling up all these lay
ers of clothes and pulled
out my wallet," said
Hutchins•
He then ran back up the
steps and out toward Za-
geir, according to Hutch
ins.
"I wouldn’t recommend
anyone trying what I did.
I just acted on reflex,"
said Hutchins.
Ifarion Thonqpson, infir-
Continued on page 10
By Cathy James
UNCA *s library expan
sion plans are on' hold
because former Governor
Jim Hunt's budget propo
sal did not include funds
for it, according to Sen
ator Dennis Vftnner of
District 28.
President Friday's re
quest submitted to the
State Advisory Budget
Commission contained the
request for the funds.
However, it appears the
request was not on Hunt's
budget and ultimately it
did not make it to the
legislature, according to
Mel Blowers, UNCA librar
ian.
"I'm not sure who let
the horse out of the
bam^ i'm just concerned
with trying to get it
(the request) back in,"
said Wayne McDevitt, spe
cial assistant to the
chancellor and former
director of Hunt’s wes
tern office.
"The addition doesn't
look favorable, but we
haven’t given up," said
Blowers.
Estimated costs for the
addition is between $6.9
and $7.2 million.
Blowers said this year
is unpredictable as far
as the budget is con
cerned. The request for
funds for the e^q>ansion
is largely a political
decision now.
"The delegation is com
mitted to do whatever we
can to get the request
Continued on page 12
ed in prosecuting anyhow.
They just want their money
THIS SQWK IS BEOdUMG wore, frequent around caapus as
the nmnbeF of puise thcftis llse* staff photo by Sylvia Hawkins