College campuses are meant to be places safe for learning and discussion. Most Illinois public universities are typically very safe for their students, but violent crimes still take place. Women are especially at risk.
Originally called the Campus Security Act, a law was enacted in 1991 requiring colleges and universities across the country to disclose crime statistics that occur on and around their campuses. In 1998, the law was amended, expanding reporting requirements of sexual offenses, as well as formally designating the law as the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act, in memory of 19-year-old Jeanne Clery who was raped and murdered in 1986 in her Lehigh University dorm room.
The Clery Act requires colleges and universities to:
Publish Annual Security Reports by October 1.
Maintain a public crime log that documents offenses over the past 60 days.
Report crime statistics for incidents on campus, public areas adjacent to campus and non-campus facilities including fraternity and sorority houses.
Require reporting of crimes that fall within these seven main categories:
Criminal Homicide
Murder and non-negligent manslaughter
Negligent manslaughter
Sex offenses
Forcible
Non-forcible
Robbery
Aggravated Assault
Burglary
Motor Vehicle Theft
Arson
Additionally, the Clery Act requires higher education institutions to report arrests or referrals for campus disciplinary action involving hate crimes, and drug, alcohol and illegal weapons violations.
While the number of drug and alcohol violations are plentiful at the majority of Illinois' public universities, the following graphic consists of only violent offenses committed in 2013, including aggravated assault, robbery and sexual offenses. Fortunately, no murders occurred on any public college campus.
Keep in mind, many cases of sexual assault go unreported and are not reflected in these statistics. Also, this list should not be used to compare college crime figures at Illinois' public universities since enrollment numbers and other factors are widely disparate. For more on each university's crime statistics, complete annual security reports can be found on each school's website.
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