Individuals with responsibility for reviewing Clery crime reports will determine the
specific crime being reported according to the following guidelines. We share these
guidelines with you so you have a general sense of Clery Act crime classifications
when you are completing a Clery Act Crime Incident Report. It’s important you include
the date, time, location and nature of the crime reported to you.
The definitions for murder, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, motor vehicle theft,
weapon law violations, drug abuse violations and liquor law violations are excerpted
from the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (FBI’s) Uniform Crime Reporting Handbook (UCR). Hate crimes are classified according to the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reporting Hate Crime Data Collection Guidelines and Training Guide for Hate Crime Data Collection. The definitions of sex offenses (unless otherwise stated), dating violence, domestic
violence, and stalking are excerpted from the Violence Against Women Act.
Murder and non-negligent manslaughter — The willful (non-negligent) killing of one human being by another
Negligent manslaughter — The killing of another person through gross negligence. (Gross negligence is the
intentional failure to perform a manifest duty in reckless disregard of the consequences
as affecting the life or property of another.)
Sex offenses — Any sexual act directed against another person, without the consent of the victim,
including instances where the victim is incapable of giving consent.
Clery Act sex offenses include:
- Rape is the penetration, no matter how slight, of the vagina or anus with any body part
or object, or oral penetration by a sex organ of another person, without the consent
of the victim.
- Fondling (“Forcible Touching” in the NYS Penal Law) is the touching of the private body parts of another person for the purpose of sexual
gratification, without the consent of the victim, including instances where the victim
is incapable of giving consent because of his/her age or because of his/her temporary
or permanent mental incapacity.
- Incest is sexual intercourse between persons who are related to each other within degrees
wherein marriage is prohibited by law.
- Statutory Rape is sexual intercourse with a person who is under the statutory age of consent.
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 usually is accompanied by the use
of a weapon or by means likely to produce death or great bodily harm.
(It is not necessary that injury result 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:
Theft of any self-propelled vehicle that runs on land surface and not on rails, such
as sport utility vehicles, automobiles, trucks, buses, motorcycles, motor scooters,
trail bikes, mopeds, all-terrain vehicles, self-propelled motor homes, snowmobiles,
golf carts and motorized wheelchairs. 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.
Hate Crimes
A hate crime is a criminal offense that manifests evidence that the victim was intentionally selected
because of the perpetrator’s bias against the victim. Bias is a preformed negative opinion or attitude toward a group of persons based on their
race, gender, gender identity, religion, disability, sexual orientation, ethnicity,
or national origin. Although there are many possible categories of bias, under Clery,
only the following eight categories are reported:
- Race. A preformed negative attitude toward a group of persons who possess common physical
characteristics (e.g., color of skin, eyes, and/or hair; facial features, etc.) genetically
transmitted by descent and heredity, which distinguish them as a distinct division
of humankind (e.g., Asians, blacks or African Americans, whites).
- Religion. A preformed negative opinion or attitude toward a group of persons who share the
same religious beliefs regarding the origin and purpose of the universe and the existence
or nonexistence of a supreme being (e.g., Catholics, Jews, Protestants, atheists).
- Sexual Orientation. A preformed negative opinion or attitude toward a group of persons based on their
actual or perceived sexual orientation.
- Gender. A preformed negative opinion or attitude toward a person or group of persons based
on their actual or perceived gender, e.g., male or female.
- Gender Identity. A preformed negative opinion or attitude toward a person or group of persons based
on their actual or perceived gender identity, e.g., bias against transgender or gender
non-conforming individuals.
- Ethnicity. A preformed negative opinion or attitude toward a group of people whose members identify
with each other, through a common heritage, often consisting of a common language,
common culture (often including a shared religion) and/or ideology that stresses common
ancestry.
- National Origin. A preformed negative opinion or attitude toward a group of people based on their
actual or perceived country of birth.
- Disability. A preformed negative opinion or attitude toward a group of persons based on their
physical or mental impairments, whether such disability is temporary or permanent,
congenital or acquired by heredity, accident, injury, advanced age or illness.
For Clery purposes, hate crimes include the previously listed offenses as well as
the following offenses should they include an element of bias/hate:
Larceny-theft — The unlawful taking, carrying, leading, or riding away of property from the possession
or constructive possession of another. Constructive possession is the condition in
which a person does not have physical custody or possession, but is in a position
to exercise dominion or control over a thing.
Simple assault — An unlawful physical attack by one person upon another where neither the offender
displays a weapon, nor the victim suffers obvious severe or aggravated bodily injury
involving apparent broken bones, loss of teeth, possible internal injury, severe laceration,
or loss of consciousness.
Intimidation — To unlawfully place another person in reasonable fear of bodily harm through the
use of threatening words and/or other conduct, but without displaying a weapon or
subjecting the victim to actual physical attack. (To be the victim of intimidation,
one does not have to be the intended target of the offender.)
Destruction/damage/vandalism of property — To willfully or maliciously destroy, damage, deface, or otherwise injure real or
personal property without the consent of the owner or the person having custody or
control of it.
Dating Violence, Domestic Violence & Stalking
The term “dating violence” is defined as violence committed by a person who is or has been in a social relationship
of a romantic or intimate nature with the victim. The existence of such a relationship
shall be determined based on the reporting party’s statement and with consideration
of the length of the relationship, the type of relationship, and the frequency of
interaction between the persons involved in the relationship. For the purposes of
this definition:
- Dating violence includes, but is not limited to, sexual or physical abuse or the threat
of such abuse.
- Dating violence does not include acts covered under the definition of domestic violence.
The term “domestic violence” includes felony or misdemeanor crimes of violence committed by a current or former
spouse or intimate partner of the victim, by a person with whom the victim shares
a child in common, by a person who is cohabitating with or has cohabitated with the
victim as a spouse or intimate partner, by a person similarly situated to a spouse
of the victim under the domestic or family violence laws of the State of New York,
or by any other person against an adult or youth victim who is protected from that
person’s acts under the domestic or family violence laws of the State of New York.
The term “stalking” means engaging in a course of conduct directed at a specific person that would cause
a reasonable person to — (a) fear for his or her safety or the safety of others; or
(b) suffer substantial emotional distress. (The term course of conduct means two or
more acts by which the stalker directly, indirectly, or through third parties follows,
monitors, observes, surveils, threatens, or communicates to or about a person or interferes
with his or her property)
Law Violations
In addition to disclosing statistics for the aforementioned offenses, the Clery Act
requires institutions to disclose violations of the law resulting in arrests or persons being referred for disciplinary
action in the following categories:
Weapons: Carrying, Possessing, Etc.
The violation of laws or ordinances prohibiting the manufacture, sale, purchase, transportation,
possession, concealment, or use of firearms, cutting instruments, explosives, incendiary
devices or other deadly weapons. This classification encompasses weapons offenses
that are regulatory in nature.
Include in this classification: manufacture, sale, or possession of deadly weapons;
carrying deadly weapons, concealed or openly; using manufacturing, etc., of silencers;
furnishing deadly weapons to minors; aliens possessing deadly weapons; and attempts
to commit any of the above.
“Deadly weapon” means any loaded weapon from which a shot, readily capable of producing
death or other serious physical injury, may be discharged, or a switchblade knife,
gravity knife, pilum ballistic knife, metal knuckle knife, dagger, billy, blackjack,
plastic knuckles, or metal knuckles, as defined by the Penal Law of the State of New
York.
Drug Law Violations
The violation of laws prohibiting the production, distribution and/or use of certain
controlled substances and the equipment or devices utilized in their preparation and/or
use. The unlawful cultivation, manufacture, distribution, sale, purchase, use, possession,
transportation or importation of any controlled drug or narcotic substance. Arrests
for violations of state and local laws, specifically those relating to the unlawful
possession, sale, use, growing, manufacturing and making of narcotic drugs.
Liquor Law Violations
The violation of state or local laws or ordinances prohibiting the manufacture, sale,
purchase, transportation, possession, or use of alcoholic beverages, not including
driving under the influence and drunkenness.
Include in this classification: the manufacture, sale, transporting, furnishing, possessing,
etc., of intoxicating liquor; maintaining unlawful drinking places; bootlegging; operating
a still; furnishing liquor to a minor or intemperate person; underage possession;
using a vehicle for illegal transportation of liquor; drinking on train or public
conveyance; and attempts to commit any of the above.
Last revision 01/2018