Federal Review Concludes Campus Crime Reporting Deficiencies Corrected By California State University And The University Of California Systems


For Immediate Release April 4, 2003

Federal Review Concludes Campus Crime Reporting Deficiencies Corrected By California State University And The University Of California Systems

University Of California Final Program Review Determination Letter (03/31/03)
California State University Final Program Review Determination Letter (03/31/03)

San Francisco, California-Both the University of California and California State University systems have taken extensive steps to come into compliance with federal campus crime reporting requirements according to the findings of a two and a half year probe that was closed Monday. The landmark investigation was launched in the fall of 2000 after an expose by the Sacramento Bee, and a complaint filed by the non-profit watchdog organization Security On Campus, Inc. revealed extensive problems with campus crime reporting at campuses across California.

The review conducted by the San Francisco office of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) confirmed that the University of California had improperly excluded crimes from annual statistics required to be reported under the Jeanne Clery Act, but found that they have since "taken steps and implemented policies and procedures that adhere to the Clery Act."

"We are very pleased at the progress these schools have made, working with the DOE, to come into compliance with the Clery Act," said S. Daniel Carter, the vice president of Security On Campus, Inc. "Having accurate information about campus crime is key for students to avoid victimization, and for administrators to make the right decisions about how to combat crime. The standards established by this review will help ensure that accurate campus crime information is available in California, and across the country."

The review, the first ever of two state university systems, also led to the passage of state legislation sponsored by Assemblymember Hannah-Beth Jackson (D-Santa Barbara) requiring random audits of college and university campus crime statistics, and the funding by the United States Congress of a Jeanne Clery Act compliance handbook. Last year the CSU system was honored by SOC with the Jeanne Clery Award for their efforts to improve campus crime reporting, and combat campus binge drinking.

Security On Campus, Inc. was founded in 1987 by Connie and Howard Clery after their daughter Jeanne was raped and murdered on the campus of Pennsylvania's Lehigh University. The Clerys secured passage of state campus crime reporting laws across the country, including one in California, before Congress in 1990 adopted the law that would become the Jeanne Clery Act.

A complete copy of the DOE review is available on the SOC web site as a 4.5 MB PDF document at http://www.securityoncampus.org/schools/cleryact/ucfprd.pdf.

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