Campus Safety Boosted with New Law
A new California law will change the way that on-campus crimes are reported to the police. A 25-year-old law was recently updated, and schools will be mandated to report any crimes occurring on campus to local authorities.
Prior to the passage of the law, students typically reported crimes to campus security or another appropriate department. Whether or not the campus department reported the criminal activity to local police was up to them. With the passage of California Education Code 67380, any crime reported to campus authorities must be reported by those authorities to the police department of jurisdiction.
The federal government has named any staff member who is responsible for campus security a CSA, or Campus Security Authority. This person can be any person named by the school as responsible for security provided they are not employed by the police. When a student reports a crime, it is the CSA who must forward that information to local police.
The government created the role of CSA so that students had someone to turn to.
With the passage of the law is a new hotline that is manned around the clock. When a CSA is made aware of a crime, either by a witness or the victim, they are able to call the incident in. Alternatively, CSAs can send an email alert that will be distributed and received in a punctual manner.
The law went into effect officially on July 1, making it too early to determine whether it will work in the intended manner. As it is worded and enforced, one of the goals of the new legislation is to ensure proper investigation of crimes. It is hoped that by putting the system in place, victims of campus crime will receive the outcome they deserve.
Twenty-nine years ago, Jeanne Clery, a student in Pennsylvania, was sexually assaulted and killed in her dorm room by a schoolmate. Her parents blamed the university’s poor security for her death, and the pair fought for adequate crime warning systems on college campuses. The Jeanne Cleary Act was passed in 1990, requiring all campuses to release yearly crime statistics to the public.
The passage of the new law is a second step in helping boost the safety of students on campus.
If you have been arrested and charged with a crime, you need an experienced attorney on your side. Call our offices for assistance as soon as possible. We are here for you.
Stephen Levine, is a Board Certified Specialist in Criminal Defense — an honor achieved by only the top criminal law attorneys in California. Mr. Levine has over 40 years of experience in criminal defense and family law serving Southern California, and is a highly regarded Super Lawyer as well as AV Rated attorney.