General Orders Details

G16.3.2 Timely Warnings

Chapter: Chapter 16 – Records and Information Management
Sub-Chapter: 16.3 - Annual Campus Security Report
Effective Date: 05/08/2018
Revised Date: 09/25/2024
Rescinds: G16.3.2 – 2/16/2022

Purpose

To provide the Indiana University Police Department (IUPD) the procedure for providing timely warnings, referred to as crime notices, to the campus community.

General Order

In compliance with the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act (Clery Act), the IUPD will conduct a timely review of all Clery crimes that are brought to the attention of IUPD to determine if the reported offense represents a serious or continuing threat to students and employees. The IUPD will initiate the notification process as soon as pertinent information is available.

Definitions

Clery crime – Certain crimes specified in the Clery Act to include:

• Criminal Offenses (Murder and non-negligent manslaughter, manslaughter by negligence, rape, fondling, incest, statutory rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, motor vehicle theft, and arson);
• Hate Crimes (any above-mentioned Criminal Offenses and any incidents of larceny-theft, simple assault, intimidation, or destruction/damage/vandalism of property that were motivated by bias);
• Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) Offenses (domestic violence, dating violence, and stalking); and
• Arrests and Referrals for Disciplinary Action for state weapons law violations, drug abuse violations, and liquor law violations.

Clery geography – Certain geographic areas specified in the Clery Act meeting the definitions of on campus, on campus student housing facility, noncampus building or property, and public property found in G1.1.2 Jurisdiction and Service Boundaries.

Timely review of offenses (16.3.2 a)

Every Clery crime that is brought to the attention of the IUPD that was reported to have occurred on Clery geography will be evaluated to determine if it represents a serious or continuing threat to students and employees requiring the issuance of a crime notice. Situations in which any Clery crime may be considered a serious or continuing threat include, but are not limited to, the following factors depending on the specific circumstances of the incident:

• The suspect or their whereabouts are unknown.
• The nature of the crime.
• The nature and level of the threat.
• There is a pattern of activity the same or similar to the reported crime. This may include incidents that have been reported just outside Clery geography.
• The situation does not appear to be an isolated incident.

When a Clery crime that falls into the Criminal Offenses, Hate Crimes, or Violence Against Women Act Offenses categories is reported to the IUPD, the responding officer will gather pertinent information so that a determination on whether to issue a crime notice can be made. In most circumstances, the supervisor or the Clery compliance coordinator will perform the initial evaluation and document in the Notification Decision Tree (NDT). Although the Arrests and Referrals for Disciplinary Action violations are evaluated, an NDT is not required for these offenses. Final determination on whether to issue a crime notice will be made by the superintendent for public safety or their designee in consultation with the director for compliance and others as appropriate.

System of notification (16.3.2 b)

Crime notices are written, issued, and sent by IU Public Safety’s director for compliance or their designee in consultation with other members of the IUPD, IU Public Safety and frequently with advice and input from the campus Notification Decision Group (NDG). The NDG for each campus includes, but is not limited to representatives from the following:

• Indiana University Police Department
• Indiana University Public Safety
• Office of Institutional Equity
• Office of the Vice President & General Counsel
• University Communications and Marketing
• Campus administrator(s) responsible for student conduct
• Senior leadership from the affected campus

A crime notice will typically include the following, unless issuing any of this information would compromise law enforcement efforts to investigate and/or solve the crime, or would identify the victim:

• Reported offense and brief description of the incident
• Date and time or timeframe of reported incident
• Location of offense
• Suspect description if there is sufficient detail that would provide a meaningful description and assist in the identification of the suspect
• Information that will promote safety and potentially aid in the prevention of similar crimes (crime prevention or safety tips)
• IUPD contact information
• Other information as appropriate

Law enforcement efforts will be considered when drafting the crime notice. Information that would compromise these efforts will be avoided. The risk of compromising law enforcement efforts is not a valid reason to decide not to issue a crime notice. The names of victims will never be included in a crime notice. The location used in the crime notice will be consistent with the location used in the daily crime log. The determination on whether to use a general or specific location will be made based on the totality of the circumstances to protect the identity of the victim.

The crime notice draft is reviewed by the NDG for content and accuracy prior to distribution. The Office of the President may have final review and approval for all crime notices. The issuance of a crime notice may be delayed only to collect or confirm pertinent information required to make the crime notice meaningful.

Crime notices are sent using IU’s approved notification system to the entire campus community in a manner that is timely, that withholds the identity of victims as confidential and with the goal of aiding in the prevention of similar crimes through the inclusion of relevant safety information. Email is the primary method of distributing crime notices. Crime notices will also be posted on the appropriate IUPD website for two weeks.

Related Information

Code of Federal Regulations

• 34 CFR 668.46 Institutional security policies and crime statistics

Indiana University

• UA-16 Clery Act Compliance

Indiana University Police Department

• G1.1.2 Jurisdiction and Service Boundaries