After a recent stint of vandalism near Marshall University’s campus, residents are concerned there is not enough being done to prevent these types of incidents.

Several vehicles had their tires slashed Jan. 13 on Buffington Avenue, according to eyewitness reports.

Rachel Marshall, a Buffington Avenue resident and student at Marshall, said she noticed the flat tires as she arrived home from class and immediately reported them to the authorities.

“I was informed that since it was not my vehicle, they couldn’t send an officer down or anything,” Marshall said. “They had to wait until the owners of those vehicles actually called to report it.”

Marshall said she was not pleased with that response.

“Instead of feeling comforted and safe with the officers starting to patrol the area which is what I wanted,” Marshall said. “I felt like an idiot for calling since it was not my car.”

This incident is just one example of reported and unreported crime in that block alone.

Marshall’s roommate, Jenna Burch, a nursing student at Marshall, was a victim of a car break-in during the fall semester.

“My driver side window was smashed, and they took a bunch of change out of the cup holders,” Burch said. “It happened to three other people in my parking lot prior to that, and now the same phenomenon is happening with the tire slashing so I think preventative measures should be taken more seriously. Rachel and I constantly worry about safety on Buffington.”

Daniel Thomas, a frequent visitor of the area, had the window of his car broken into during the fall as well.

“My passenger side window was completely busted out,” Thomas said. “When I looked around inside, the only thing I found to be missing was my white powdery hand chalk I used when I play billiards. I’m assuming they thought it was cocaine because they bypassed my iPod to get it.”

Thomas said he filed a police report and they said they would step up patrol of that area and call him if they found a suspect.

Tyler Ferris can be contacted at ferris26@marshall. edu.