" Does Lincoln need to have a curfew? Sounds like ALOT of violent crimes happen after 12. "

" Lincoln needs a city budget that will support a police force that will maintain a crime rate that is the identical in all areas of this city. That would mean more police (and even foot patrols) in some areas than others but the City does not have a budget to do that. "

" Yes, and lets also ban walking.... "

" Just like my mom says, "nothing ever good happens after midnight". "

" yeah b/c if this victim is 22 yrs/old this wouldn't have happened (heavy sarcasm). Or are you referring to general curfew for the entire population. Now that'd be rich idea...a baghdad like curfew for Lincoln NE. No information is provided on the assailants age. "

" A curfew? This was a 19 year old, not a 10 year old. "

" Yeah, because I'm sure the guy who just held someone up at gunpoint is really going to abide by a curfew law... "

" I think you can look at any city and MOST violent crimes happen after 12 there too! "

" Too bad we there wasn't any cops downtown on segways. They could have drove down that sedan at a speed of 3 mph. "

" it was a random act of violence...these things happen...we don't live in Mayberry. Just be thankful nothing happened to this young man, and he is only out $135...it could have been much worse. "

" this is scary because 17th and vine it right next to the court for UNL students! and the university police station is just a block north of this! "

" 17th and Vine is the edge of UNL campus. This week is Finals week so there a good chance this kid could have been out studying or walking home from studying or whatever. Sounds like the UNL "security guards' need to step it up a little. "

" I am just glad that the cops were out busting parties last night instead of looking around areas for these kinds acts. Parties are WAY more important. "

" If you've ever driven down this area at night, it's very dark east of the gas station on Vine street. There needs to be more lights in the area for one. This is pretty much UNL campus, which is sad that we are having this problem so close to education ground. "

" Maybe I'm strange, but I hardly ever carry more than $40 on my person...and I cannot recall a single situation in which I needed $100 on me while walking after midnight. "

" The person robbed was my close friend. I was appalled by the way university police handled this situation. There is no reason this should have happened on campus only a block from my friend's dormitory. If university police would have been doing a better job of patrolling the area, things like this would not happen. Maybe the university should think about installing a few more blue lights around campus. The officer also accused my friend of lying about being robbed and said he was making it up to get attention. I am so glad the officer had sympathy for the victim. Great job campus police. "

" Last time I checked UNL had their own police force. And I recall a few weeks ago they actually stopped a robbery and arrested 3 UNL students for attempted robbery. We can not excpect police (UNL, LPD, LSO) to be everywhere when crime occurs. If you want to get technical 17th and Vine is city property so why not blame LPD? Because you can not blame the police when dirtballs commit crimes. How about blaming the bad "guys" for once? "

" Thats all we need in this town is more police russell. These types of crimes don't happen often enough to hire more police. Lincoln is already over populated with police officers with nothing better to do than pull people over for minor traffic violations and charge the heck out of them with fines. "

" I hope by refering to 'rent a cops' you are refering to the CSOs. UNL PD is a fine police department and deserves more respect than 'rent a cops.'

Keep in mind UNL PD's 'rent a cops' are the ones in charge that keep 84,000 people safe on football game days (not to mention those on campus not at the game). Furthermore, UNL PD's fine work during game days is something that other PDs envy. PDs such as units handling the Super Bowl and Washington DC capital police have come to see what these 'rent a cops' are producing to insure the safety of 84,000 people.

As a final note, UNL PD is a state entity; Lincoln PD is a city entity. "

" UNL isn't like UNO - UNL doesn't have security guards, UNLPD are full sworn and armed law enforcement officers. To be precise, the are comissioned as special state deputy sheriffs, with statewide jurisdiction (federal property and native American/indian reservations excepted), similar to the Nebraska state patrol. "

" I live in this neighborhood and truly believe it is no more dangerous than any other part of the city. When I lived in the Near South, I frequently saw hookers and drug deals, and coming across drunks passed out in the alley was a frequent occurrance. It's been nearly 10 years since I moved into the Hawley Historic District, and the police and the city's revitalization efforts have made this a great place to live. I actually feel lucky that my main complaint are the college kids' mega-parties.. "

" For the record, numerous studies have shown that additional patrol cars have absolutely no deterrent effect, nor do they serve to provide any additional protection. In fact, having police officers drive around looking for crime is about as rational as firefighters driving around and looking for fires. "

" You cant really lay blame here people...its dark, its late...if you dont want bad stuff to happen why risk it by being out on a dark street. There is such a thing as prevention. "

" To Jim,
You crack me up! And you are soooo Right! Although mom is right nothing good ever happens after midnight. "

" We can afford a new arena, a new city park, the Antelope Valley Project, a new fair location and new schools, but we can't afford enough additional police force members to help stem a rising tide of armed assaults and robberies? Even our share of a new city jail is only to house criminals AFTER the crime has been committed. Our cops are stretched to the limit. How about all the local politial candidates, who have millions to pour into a media campaign, donating money to something that will really and truly help all of us in the Lincoln area? Instead of wasting money on Television ads, how about they contribute money to hire us more members of the police and fire departments? And where can the citizenry contribute as well? If the mayor and city council want to actually make this a better city to live in, how about throwing some dollars toward a cause that will help bring back "The Good Life" we all used to brag about? What do you say Lincoln? "

" First of all, this crime is the fault of the criminal and no one else. Not the victim for being out after midnight, nor the police for not happening to drive by this corner at exactly 3:20am. It's not the police's job to protect people (see Warren v. District of Columbia), it's their job to investigate and catch the criminals. If you want/need to be out after dark in questionable locations, then take the responsibility and initiative to learn how to protect yourself. There have always been bad guys who take advantage of good people, and there always will be. Take some lessons on self-defense, get some pepper-spray, a taser, or a concealed carry permit. Good law-abiding people learning to defend themselves and avoid these situations will go a lot further in deterring crime than adding more patrol vehicles to the streets. "

" UNL'S CSO program is magnificent, these guys are dedicated individuals and thrive on catching foolish criminals...lets blame timing, bad moms, and ....PEACE "

" Ya good thinking, pepper spray someone with a gun! You can't be serious. You are out of your mind if you just don't give the person your money. It is not worth being killed for $100 and $35 watch. "

" The bottom line is this: The city only receives 14 cents for every dollar in taxes we pay. This is to cover all city needs, including the police and fire/rescue departments. Keep in mind that the LPS school system gets a whopping 61-62 cents per dollar, much of which I can say doesn't seem to be spent on the students, but on administration salaries, etc. But don't get me going on that or I'll have to rant about the wonderful new grading system that Gourley has implemented in the middle schools...

Until we hold LPS accountable, and take back some of that money and put it toward other necessary city needs, our police department will continue to be understaffed. I heard Chief Cassidy the other day talking about the numbers of officers needed for a city our size. I was absolutely appalled at how we fail to measure up. "

" And this is why I will never live in Lincoln. "

" You may want to do a little homework. You would be suprised how many similar incidents have been occuring at these big parties. Also, the police can't be everywhere at once, so stopping these crimes in progress is extremely difficult, to say the least. "

" Wait, 17th and Vine is on UNL campus. UNL campus is a 'no gun zone'. This should not be possible...criminals have to obey the laws too.

Oh wait, they are criminals...they don't follow laws. Maybe students should be allowed to legally have a way to defend themselves. Otherwise the University (and thus the state) must assume all responsibility for every students' safety.

And when the fail to do so, the lawsuit floodgates can open. "