As new details arise from the murder of a Temple University Police officer, growing concerns are being made about safety in and around campus. NBC10’s Investigative reporter Claudia Vargas took a look at the area’s crime statistics.
The murder of Temple Police Officer Christopher Fitzgerald is part of an ongoing increase in gun violence in or near Temple University’s campus.
The number of total shootings fatal and non-fatal citywide peaked in 2021 and came down slightly in 2022. But the number of shootings in the radius where Temple Police patrols increased in 2022.
Gun Violence in Philadelphia
Click or hover over each point below to see instances of gun violence around Temple University's police patrol area from 2018 to 2023.
Note: Data is current as of Feb. 16, 2023
Data: Philadelphia Office of the Controller, Temple University • Nina Lin / NBC
The NBC10 Investigators took a look at both fatal and non-fatal shooting data from Philadelphia police and the City Controller. We found that since 2018, the number of shootings within the Temple campus patrol area nearly tripled going from 11 shootings in 2018 to 26 shootings in 2022.
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And in 2023, there’s already been at least two shootings, including the fatal one that killed officer Fitzgerald.
Jason Gravel is an assistant professor of criminal justice at Temple and has studied city crime. He says police -- both Philadelphia police and Temple police-- are doing all they can.
“They are patrolling, they are out and about, especially given the violence that has been occurring around campus,” Gravel said. “But it’s very hard to prevent these crimes from occurring," Gravel said.
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Still fresh in the minds of people around Temple is the 2021 murder of Temple University Sam Collington. He was killed during an attempted carjacking just one block north of Temple’s campus.
And the violence continued with brazen, daylight shootings, homicides, carjacking and even home invasions.
“This is the same trend we are seeing throughout the city,” Gravel said.
To stop, or stem it, around campus, he said, “would require incredible manpower to be able to do so.”
A Temple spokesperson declined to comment for this story, noting that “today is a day of mourning.”
There are additional resources for people or communities that have endured gun violence in Philadelphia. Further information can be found here.
