Clery Act
A Safer Campus
The Clery Act aims to create a safer and more secure campus environment by providing information, promoting crime prevention efforts, and holding institutions accountable for maintaining a campus that is conducive to learning and well-being.
A&M-Commerce makes every effort to meet all requirements of the Clery Act. A&M-Commerce University Ethics and Compliance office, in conjunction with the University Police Department (UPD), is responsible for compiling and publishing the Annual Security Report by October 1st each year.
Crime Class Definitions
Murder and Nonnegligent Manslaughter – The willful (non-negligent) killing of one human being by another.
Negligent Manslaughter – The killing of another person through gross negligence.
Sex Offense Forcible (F) – Any sexual act directed against another person, forcibly and/or against that person's will; or not forcibly or against the person's will where the victim is incapable of giving consent: forcible rape, forcible sodomy, sexual assault with an object, forcible fondling and attempted rape.
Sex Offense Non Forcible (N) – Unlawful, non-forcible sexual intercourse: incest and statutory rape.
Robbery – The taking or attempting to take anything of value from the care, custody, or control of a person or persons by force or threat of force or violence and/or by putting the victim in fear.
Aggravated Assault – An unlawful attack by one person upon another for the purpose of inflicting severe or aggravated bodily injury. This type of assault is usually accompanied by the use of a weapon or by means likely to produce death or great bodily harm. (It is not necessary that injury results from an aggravated assault when a gun, knife, or other weapon is used which could and probably would result in serious personal injury if the crime were successfully completed.)
Burglary – The unlawful entry of a structure to commit a felony or a theft. For reporting purposes, this definition includes: unlawful entry with intent to commit a larceny or felony, breaking and entering with intent to commit a larceny, housebreaking, safecracking and all attempts to commit any of the aforementioned.
Motor Vehicle Theft – The theft or attempted theft of a motor vehicle. (Classify as motor vehicle theft in all cases where automobiles are taken by persons not having lawful access even though the vehicles are later abandoned—including joyriding.)
Arson – Any willful or malicious burning or attempt to burn, with or without intent to defraud, a dwelling house, public building, motor vehicle or aircraft, personal property of another, etc
Disciplinary Referrals – Incidents in which a student was not arrested but was referred for campus disciplinary action for liquor law violations, drug law violations, and illegal weapons possession. Do not include disciplinary referrals for violation of university policy if there was no violation of the law. For example, if a student of legal drinking age violates a “dry campus” policy and is referred for disciplinary action, this statistic should not be included in the crime statistics.
Liquor Law Violation – The violation of laws or ordinances prohibiting: the manufacture, sale, transporting, furnishing, possessing of intoxicating liquor, maintaining unlawful drinking places, bootlegging, operating a still, furnishing liquor to a minor or intemperate person, using a vehicle for illegal transportation of liquor, drinking on a train or public conveyance and any attempts to commit any of the foregoing violations. This list does not include public drunkenness and driving under the influence.
Drug Law Violation – Violations of State and local laws related to the possession, sale, use, growing, manufacturing, and making of narcotic drugs. The relevant substances include opium or cocaine and their derivatives (morphine, heroin, codeine), marijuana, synthetic narcotics (Demerol, methadone) and dangerous nonnarcotic drugs (barbiturates, Benzedrine).
Weapon Law Violation – The violation of laws or ordinances regulating weapons.
Hate Crimes – Any crime that manifests evidence that the victim was intentionally selected because of the victim's actual or perceived race, religion, gender, sexual orientation, ethnicity or physical/mental disabilities.
The following crimes only apply to hate crime reporting:
Simple Assault – Assaults and attempted assaults where no weapon was used and which did not result in serious or aggravated injury to the victim. (This only applies in hate crime reporting).
Larceny-Theft – The unlawful taking, carrying, leading, or riding away of property from the possession or constructive possession of another.
Vandalism – To willfully or maliciously destroy, injure, disfigure, or deface any public or private property, real or personal, without the consent of the owner or person having custody or control by cutting, tearing, breaking, marking, painting, drawing, covering with filth, or any other such means as may be specified by local law.
Intimidation – To intentionally say or do something which would cause a person of ordinary sensibilities to be fearful of bodily harm.
Sexual Assault, Domestic Violence, Dating Violence, and Stalking
Prevention, Reporting, and Investigative Information
A&M-Commerce is committed to providing assistance to people harmed by sexual assault, domestic violence, dating violence, and stalking and do so through a variety of services. Sexual assaults are non-consensual sexual acts involving force, manipulation or coercion. It is an act of aggression, violence and power.
The term “dating violence” means violence committed by a person:
- Who is or has been a social relationship of a romantic or intimate nature with the victim; and
- Where the existence of such a relationship shall be determined based on a consideration of the following factors:
- The length of the relationship
- The type of relationship
- The frequency of interaction between the persons involved in the relationship
The term “domestic violence” includes felony or misdemeanor crimes of violence committed by a current or former spouse of the victim, by a person with whom shares a child in common, by a person who is cohabitating with or has cohabitated with the victim as a spouse, by a similarly situated to a spouse of the victim under the domestic or family violence laws of the jurisdiction receiving grant monies, or by any other person against and adult or youth victim who is protected from that person's acts under the domestic or family violence laws of the jurisdiction.
The term “stalking” means engaging in a course of conduct directed at a specific person that would cause a reasonable person to
- Fear for his or her safety or the safety of others; or
- Suffer substantial emotional stress
Pursuant to the Sexual Assault Victim's Bill of Rights, it becomes important to promote the reporting of all sex crime violations as well as outline the procedures to facilitate the reporting of all alleged violations. Therefore, students are hereby informed of the following programs and options.
- Sexual Assault: Generally defined as attempted or actual unwanted sexual activity.
- Forcible and Non-Forcible Sex Offenses: A forcible sex offense is “any sexual act directed against another person, forcible and/or against that person's will where the victim is incapable of giving consent,” and includes forcible rape, forcible sodomy, sexual assault with an object and forcible fondling. Non-forcible sex offenses are acts of unlawful, non-forcible sexual intercourse such as incest and statutory rape.
Various programs addressing sexual assault and related issues are presented throughout each academic year.
These programs are conducted primarily by the Counseling and Student Development Center, the Student Activities Board, Residential Living and Learning, the University Police Department, and other departments and agencies campus-wide.
In instances where sexual assault is alleged, the victim is strongly encouraged to report the incident to the University Police Department. The victim will be given information on how to bring formal charges against the accused. The victim will be given a list of resources to help lessen the negative impact of any emotional, physical or psychological trauma.
Depending on the severity of the crime, those found guilty of a sex crime may face criminal charges, suspension or expulsion from the university.
When appropriate, academic and/or on-campus living arrangements may be modified as a direct result of a sexual assault. This action may be taken when requested by the victim and if such modifications are reasonable and available. These arrangements are coordinated through the Title IX office.
Students who are victims of a sex crime are eligible for and encouraged to take advantage of counseling services offered by the Counseling and Student Development Center, located on the second floor of the Student Services Building.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Clery Act?
The Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act, or Clery Act, is a federal law that requires all U.S. colleges and universities (including foreign campuses of U.S. institutions), both public and private, participating in federal student aid programs to maintain and disclose certain crime statistics and campus security/fire information. The Clery Act mandates requirements for incidents of sexual violence and emergency situations.
The Act is named in memory of Jeanne Clery who was raped and murdered in her residence hall room by a fellow student on April 5, 1986 at Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.
Disclosures about required crime and fire statistics and summaries of security and fire policies are made in an Annual Security Report and Annual Fire Safety Report on Student Housing. Information about specific crimes and emergencies is made available on an ongoing basis through the daily crime log, fire log, timely warnings and emergency notifications.
Why is the Clery Act important?
The Act was designed to assist students, parents and other members of the campus community in making decisions which affect their personal safety. The Clery Act requires institutions of higher education to provide current and prospective students and employees with accurate, complete and timely information about crime and campus safety.