Victims won't be reimbursed

Students who are victims of the recent rash of thefts at the IU School of Music are not eligible for reimbursement for their loss from IU.\nLarry Stephens, director of risk management, said IU doesn't provide any coverage for personal property of students. Stephens said students are advised to get their own insurance coverage for personal possessions.\nThe School of Music reported Oct. 6, that its master keys had been missing for over a month. Recent thefts include a $20,000 violin, a $5,000 violin bow, nearly $2,000 of recording equipment, cash from the desk of the School of Music's dean, and a professor's $500 digital camera.\nIn the case of Tuesday's theft of the Canon digital camera from Music School faculty member Paul Elliott, risk management said they will provide coverage for an employee's personal property only if it is essential to their job. Stephens said employees must file their property with their own insurance and any amount not covered by their own personal polices, will be covered by risk management.\nSome students said the school isn't doing enough to protect property, since locks haven't been changed since a set of master keys was stolen last month.\nSue-Jean Lee, a first-year graduate student studying piano, said after the keys were stolen, the school should have had the locks changes immediately -- regardless of the cost.\n"Not even one student feels safe going to the restroom without packing up all their stuff," Lee said.\nSchool of Music budget director Royce Deckard said the locks haven't been replaced because of the $30-40,000 cost associated with replacing all of the jeopardized locks.\nFriday morning, a janitor foiled a robber's attempt to gain access to a room in the music school where a vault containing money was stored.\nIt may seem that theft at the music school is an epidemic, but according to statistics from IU Police Department Spokesman Lt. Jerry Minger, the cases seem to be in the average range.\nFrom Jan. 1 to Oct. 16, 2002, there were four cases of theft in the music school reported to officers. For the same time period this year, there have been five in the school.\nMusic School Dean Gwyn Richards didn't return calls and e-mails. \n-- Contact staff writer Brandon Morley at bmorley@indiana.edu.