Definitions of Clery Act Reportable Crimes

Criminal Homicide: These offenses are separated into two categories: Murder and Non-negligent manslaughter, and Manslaughter by Negligence.

Murder/Non-negligent Manslaughter: The willful (non-negligent) killing of one human being by another.
Manslaughter by Negligence: The killing of another person through gross negligence.

Sexual Assault: Any sexual act directed against another person, without the consent of the victim, including instances where the victim is incapable of giving consent.

Rape: 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. This offense includes the rape of both males and females.
Fondling: 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: Sexual intercourse between persons who are related to each other within the degrees wherein marriage is prohibited by law.
Statutory Rape: Sexual intercourse with a person who is under the statutory age of consent.

Robbery: Taking or attempting to take anything of value from the care, custody, or control of a person by force or threat of force or violence and/or by putting the victim in fear. Essential elements of a robbery:

Committed in the presence of a victim.
Victim is directly confronted by the perpetrator.
Victim is threatened with force or put in fear that force will be used.
Involves a theft or Larceny

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. Include as Aggravated Assaults:

Assaults or attempts to kill or Murder.
Poisoning (including the use of date rape drugs).
Assault with a dangerous or deadly weapon.
Maiming.
Mayhem.
Assault with explosives.
Assault with disease (as in cases when the offender is aware that he or she is infected with a deadly disease and deliberately attempts to inflict the disease by biting, spitting, etc.).

Burglary: Unlawful entry of a structure to commit a felony or a theft. Classify as Burglary:

Offenses that are classified by local law enforcement agencies as Burglary (any degree); unlawful entry with intent to commit a larceny or felony; breaking and entering with intent to commit a larceny; housebreaking; safecracking; and all attempts at these offenses.
Forcible Entry: All offenses where force of any kind is used to unlawfully enter a structure for the purpose of committing a theft or felony. This rule applies when a thief gains entry by using tools; breaking windows; forcing windows, doors, transoms or ventilators; cutting screens, walls or roofs; and where known, using master keys, picks, unauthorized keys, celluloid, a mechanical contrivance of any kind or other devices that leave no outward mark but are used to force a lock. This includes Burglary by concealment inside a building followed by exiting the structure.
Unlawful Entry–No Force: The entry of a structure in this situation is achieved by use of an unlocked door or window. The element of trespass to the structure is essential in this category, which includes thefts from open garages, open warehouses, open or unlocked dwellings (such as dorm rooms) and open or unlocked common basement areas in apartment houses where entry is achieved by someone other than the tenant who has lawful access, or others whom the tenant allows to have free and regular access to the structure. If an item was taken from an unlocked dorm room and you can establish that neither the tenant nor those friends with free and regular access to the room have taken the item, then unlawful access has occurred. In this context, it is important to note that a “breaking” occurs when a perpetrator crosses the threshold of a boundary that results in a trespass. As such it is possible for a burglar to “break” an open doorway or window. There is no requirement that entry be forced in any way or that damage to a door, window or frame be evident.
Attempted Forcible Entry: A situation where a forcible entry into a locked structure is attempted but not completed. An attempt to commit the crime of Burglary must be evaluated in context based on all available information. Such incidents must not be classified merely as “suspicious activity” or “vandalism” where the totality of facts indicates that a Burglary was in fact attempted. Possible indicators of an attempted Burglary may include, but are not limited to, damage to a door or window, the presence of Burglary tools, a recurring or similar modus operandi or “signature” that ties an incident to other similar offenses (sometimes referred to as “common plan and scheme”), and/or proximity in time and place to a pattern of other similar crimes.

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 incidents where automobiles are taken by persons not having lawful access even though the vehicles are later abandoned. Include joyriding in this category. If a vehicle is stolen in conjunction with another offense, classify the crime using the procedures for classifying multiple offenses.

Arson: 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. Classify as arson:

Only fires determined to have been willfully or maliciously set.
Attempts to burn.
Any fire that investigation determines to meet the UCR definition of Arson regardless of the value of any property damage.
Incidents where an individual willfully or maliciously burns his or her own property.

Arrest: Persons processed by arrest, citation, or summons.

Referred for disciplinary action: the referral of any person to any official who initiates a disciplinary action of which a record is established and which may result in the imposition of a sanction. The disciplinary process at your institution might be called “disciplinary action,” “mediation,” “judicial process” or some other term. The referral may, but doesn’t have to, originate with the police. Regardless of what you call it, if the process involves the following three criteria, it’s a disciplinary action under the Clery Act:

The official receiving the referral must initiate a disciplinary action,
A record of the action must be established, and
The action may, but does not have to, result in a sanction.

Note that a disciplinary action can be initiated in an informal as well as a formal manner. It can include an interview or an initial review of names submitted to an official. So too, sanctions can be formal or informal, punitive or educational. For example, requiring completion of a “Dangers of Alcohol” education seminar in lieu of an arrest for underage alcohol possession must be included as one referral for disciplinary action for a Liquor Law Violation. Documentation of the referral must be maintained for purposes of Clery Act compliance for three years from the latest publication of the annual security report to which they apply.

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 weapon offenses that are regulatory in nature.

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. The relevant substances include: opium or cocaine and their derivatives (morphine, heroin, codeine); marijuana; synthetic narcotics-manufactured narcotics which can cause true addiction (Demerol, methadone); and dangerous non-narcotic drugs (barbiturates, Benzedrine).

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 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.

Hate Crimes: The Clery Act requires institutions to separately report all hate crime statistics on any of the previously mentioned offenses or any other crime involving bodily injury reported to local police agencies or to a campus security authority that manifest evidence that the victim was intentionally selected because of the perpetrator’s bias against the victim. Categories of Prejudice:

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. Sexual Orientation is the term for a person’s physical, romantic, and/or emotional attraction to members of the same and/or opposite sex, including lesbian, gay, bisexual, and heterosexual (straight) individuals.
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. Gender non-conforming describes a person who does not conform to the gender-based expectations of society, e.g., a woman dressed in traditionally male clothing or a man wearing makeup. A gender non-conforming person may or may not be a lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender person but may be perceived as such.
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. The concept of ethnicity differs from the closely related term “race” in that “race” refers to a grouping based mostly upon biological criteria, while “ethnicity” also encompasses additional cultural factors.
National Origin. A preformed negative opinion or attitude toward a group of people based on their actual or perceived country of birth. This bias may be against people that have a name or accent associated with a national origin group, participate in certain customs associated with a national origin group, or because they are married to or associate with people of a certain national origin.
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.

Larceny-Theft: The unlawful taking, carrying, leading or riding away of property from the possession or constructive possession of another.

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: Unlawfully place another person in reasonable fear of bodily harm through the use of threatening words and/or another conduct, but without displaying a weapon or subjecting the victim to actual physical attack.

Destruction/Damage/Vandalism of property: 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: 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.

Domestic Violence: A felony or misdemeanor crime 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 jurisdiction in which the crime of violence occurred; 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 jurisdiction in which the crime of violence occurred.

Stalking: Engaging in a course of conduct directed at a specific person that would cause a reasonable person to fear for the person’s safety or the safety of others or suffer substantial emotional distress.

Course of Conduct – two or more acts, including, but not limited to, acts in which the stalker directly, indirectly, or through third parties, by any action, method, device, or means, follows, monitors, observes, surveils, threatens, or communicates to or about a person, or interferes with a person’s property.
Reasonable Person – a reasonable person under similar circumstances and with similar identities to the victim.
Substantial Emotional Distress – significant mental suffering or anguish that may, but does not necessarily require medical or other professional treatment and counseling.

Consent: Consent can be given by word or action, but non-verbal consent is more ambiguous than explicitly stating one’s wants and limitations. Clarification of a partner’s explicit consent is recommended. Individuals who consent to sex must be able to fully understand what they are doing. For example, alcohol or drugs may impair a person’s ability to give valid consent if the person cannot comprehend the who, what, where, when, why, or how of a sexual interaction. Consumption of alcohol, in and of itself, does not relieve an individual initiating sexual activity of the responsibility to obtain ongoing consent. Silence does not indicate consent. Consent is never to be assumed and is never implied even in a relationship.

Sexual Assault: An offense that meets the definition of rape, fondling, incest or statutory rape as used in the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reporting system. A sex offense is any act directed against another person, without the consent of the victim, including instances where the victim is incapable of giving consent.

In Georgia, OCGA 16-6-5.1, sexual assault is defined as “sexual contact” that is perpetrated by “a person who has a supervisory or disciplinary authority over another individual.” More specifically, sex offenses are defined individually in the Georgia State Code.

Sexual Assault is a term used to describe a number of different nonconsensual sexual contacts including but not limited to rape and sexual battery.

Rape: According to the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reporting: 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.

Georgia State Code 16-6-1:

A person commits the offense of rape when he has carnal knowledge of:
1. A female forcibly and against her will; or
2. A female who is less than ten years of age. Carnal knowledge in rape occurs when there is any penetration of the female sex organ by the male sex organ. The fact that the person allegedly raped is the wife of the defendant shall not be a defense to a charge of rape.
A person convicted of the offense of rape shall be punished by death, by imprisonment for life without parole, by imprisonment for life, or by a split sentence that is a term of imprisonment for not less than 25 years and not exceeding life imprisonment, followed by probation for life. Any person convicted under this Code section shall, in addition, be subject to the sentencing and punishment provisions of Code Sections 17-10-6.1 and 17-10-7.
When evidence relating to an allegation of rape is collected in the course of a medical examination of the person who is the victim of the alleged crime, the Georgia Crime Victims Emergency Fund, as provided for in Chapter 15 of Title 17, shall be responsible for the cost of the medical examination to the extent that expense is incurred for the limited purpose of collecting evidence.

Fondling: According to the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reporting: 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 capacity.

Georgia State Code 16-6-22.1 defines fondling (sexual battery) as follows:

For the purposes of this Code section, the term "intimate parts" means the primary genital area, anus, groin, inner thighs, or buttocks of a male or female and the breasts of a female.
A person commits the offense of sexual battery when he or she intentionally makes physical contact with the intimate parts of the body of another person without the consent of that person.

Incest: According to the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reporting: Sexual intercourse between persons who are related to each other within the degrees wherein marriage is prohibited by law.

Georgia State Code 16-6-22:

A person commits the offense of incest when such person engages in sexual intercourse or sodomy, as such term is defined in Code Section 16-6-2, with a person whom he or she knows he or she is related to either by blood or by marriage as follows:
1. Father and child or stepchild;
2. Mother and child or stepchild;
3. Siblings of the whole blood or of the half-blood;
4. Grandparent and grandchild of the whole blood or of the half-blood;
5. Aunt and niece or nephew of the whole blood or of the half-blood; or
6. Uncle and niece or nephew of the whole blood or of the half-blood.

A person convicted of the offense of incest shall be punished by imprisonment for not less than ten nor more than 30 years; provided, however, that any person convicted of the offense of incest under this subsection with a child under the age of 14 years shall be punished by imprisonment for not less than 25 nor more than 50 years. Any person convicted under this Code section of the offense of incest shall, in addition, be subject to the sentencing and punishment provisions of Code Section 17-10-6.2.

Statutory Rape: According to the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reporting: Sexual intercourse with a person who is under the statutory age of consent.

Georgia State Code 16-6-3:

A person commits the offense of statutory rape when he or she engages in sexual intercourse with any person under the age of 16 years and not his or her spouse, provided that no conviction shall be had for this offense on the unsupported testimony of the victim.
Except as provided in subsection (c) of this Code section, a person convicted of the offense of statutory rape shall be punished by imprisonment for not less than one nor more than 20 years; provided, however, that if the person so convicted is 21 years of age or older, such person shall be punished by imprisonment for not less than ten nor more than 20 years. Any person convicted under this subsection of the offense of statutory rape shall, in addition, be subject to the sentencing and punishment provisions of Code Section 17-10-6.2.
If the victim is at least 14 but less than 16 years of age and the person convicted of statutory rape is 18 years of age or younger and is no more than four years older than the victim, such person shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.

Domestic Violence: According to the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reporting: A felony or misdemeanor crime 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 jurisdiction in which the crime of violence occurred; 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 jurisdiction in which the crime of violence occurred.

The State of Georgia does not have any specific law regarding Domestic Violence. If a crime of battery occurs and the elements listed in the above definition exist regarding the relationship between the perpetrator and the victim, then it is indicated on the arrest warrant under O.C.G.A. 19-13-1 referred to Family Violence.

Dating Violence: According to the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reporting: 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 State of Georgia does not have any specific law regarding Dating Violence. If a crime of battery occurs and the elements listed in the above definition exist regarding the relationship between the perpetrator and the victim, then it is indicated on the arrest warrant.

Stalking: According to the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reporting: Engaging in a course of conduct directed at a specific person that would cause a reasonable person to fear for the person’s safety or the safety of others or suffer substantial emotional distress.

Course of Conduct – two or more acts, including, but not limited to, acts in which the stalker directly, indirectly, or through third parties, by any action, method, device, or means, follows, monitors, observes, surveils, threatens, or communicates to or about a person, or interferes with a person’s property.
Reasonable Person – a reasonable person under similar circumstances and with similar identities to the victim.
Substantial Emotional Distress – significant mental suffering or anguish that may, but does not necessarily require medical or other professional treatment and counseling.

Georgia State Code 16-5-90:

(1) A person commits the offense of stalking when he or she follows, places under surveillance, or contacts another person at or about a place or places without the consent of the other person for the purpose of harassing and intimidating the other person. For the purpose of this article, the terms "computer" and "computer network" shall have the same meanings as set out in Code Section 16-9-92; the term "contact" shall mean any communication including without being limited to communication in person, by telephone, by mail, by broadcast, by computer, by computer network, or by any other electronic device; and the place or places that contact by telephone, mail, broadcast, computer, computer network, or any other electronic device is deemed to occur shall be the place or places where such communication is received. For the purpose of this article, the term "place or places" shall include any public or private property occupied by the victim other than the residence of the defendant. For the purposes of this article, the term "harassing and intimidating" means a knowing and willful course of conduct directed at a specific person which causes emotional distress by placing such person in reasonable fear for such person's safety or the safety of a member of his or her immediate family, by establishing a pattern of harassing and intimidating behavior, and which serves no legitimate purpose. This Code section shall not be construed to require that an overt threat of death or bodily injury has been made. (2) A person commits the offense of stalking when such person, in violation of a bond to keep the peace posted pursuant to Code Section 17-6-110, standing order issued under Code Section 19-1-1, temporary restraining order, temporary protective order, permanent restraining order, permanent protective order, preliminary injunction, or permanent injunction or condition of pretrial release, condition of probation, or condition of parole in effect prohibiting the harassment or intimidation of another person, broadcasts or publishes, including electronic publication, the picture, name, address, or phone number of a person for whose benefit the bond, order, or condition was made and without such person's consent in such a manner that causes other persons to harass or intimidate such person and the person making the broadcast or publication knew or had reason to believe that such broadcast or publication would cause such person to be harassed or intimidated by others.

Except as provided in subsection (c) of this Code section, a person who commits the offense of stalking is guilty of a misdemeanor.
Upon the second conviction, and all subsequent convictions, for stalking, the defendant shall be guilty of a felony and shall be punished by imprisonment for not less than one year nor more than ten years.

Before sentencing a defendant for any conviction of stalking under this Code section or aggravated stalking under Code Section 16-5-91, the sentencing judge may require psychological evaluation of the offender and shall consider the entire criminal record of the offender. At the time of sentencing, the judge is authorized to issue a permanent restraining order against the offender to protect the person stalked and the members of such person's immediate family, and the judge is authorized to require psychological treatment of the offender as a part of the sentence, or as a condition for suspension or stay of sentence, or for probation.