Borrowing “Fear City” tactic from 1975, police union tells Yale students to avoid New Haven

By DAVE COLLINS
Associated Press

Yale University and New Haven officials are blasting the labor union for college police for handing out flyers with grim reaper depictions warning new students about high crime in the city and offering safety tips. School and city officials say the flyers were distributed Sunday as incoming Yale freshmen moved into their dorms. Officials said at a news conference Tuesday that the handouts contained misleading crime statistics and were meant as a scare tactic during talks over a new police contract. The union says the flyers were not related to contract negotiations and were meant only to give students safety advice as they moved in.