Although the number of harassing telephone calls reported to the University Police is on the rise, many students choose not to press charges, police said Thursday.

When students report harassing phone calls and traps are put on their telephone lines, the students have a say in the prankster’s punishment when the person is caught, said UP Det. Deborrah Pettit.

If the perpetrator is an NIU student, the victim can choose to have the person arrested, to have the case handled by the judicial office or to drop the charges, she said

Students opt to drop the charges about 35 percent of the time, Pettit said.

Putting a trap on a phone line costs NIU about $25 to $50 per line, and about 30 traps are put on NIU phones each semester, said Dale Pollett, supervisor of communications systems at the office of telecommunications.

Pollett said he urges students who have received harassing calls to press charges against the perpetrators. “The object of putting a trap on is to stop someone from harassing someone else,” he said.

Judicial Officer Larry Bolles said telephone harassment is the “new fad” on campus these days and he receives 10 to 15 calls a week from students complaining about prank calls.

“Press charges. Stop this foolishness. People must know there is a price to pay when they make prank phone calls,” Bolles said.