Uniform Crime Report and Clery Act Crime Definitions

The following definitions are from the Violence Against Women Act amendments to the Clery Act.

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.)

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.

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.

Criminal Homicide - Manslaughter by Negligence - The killing of another person through gross negligence.

Criminal Homicide - Murder and Nonnegligent Manslaughter - The willful (nonnegligent) killing of one human being by another.

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.

i.  The existence of such a relationship shall be 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.

ii. For the purposes of this definition—

A)    Dating Violence includes, but is not limited to, sexual or physical abuse or the threat of such abuse.

B)     Dating violence does not include acts covered under the definition of domestic violence.

iii.        For the purposes of complying with the requirements of this section and §668.41, any incident meeting this definition is considered a crime for the purposes of Clery Act reporting.

 

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. 

 

Domestic Violence

i.  A Felony or misdemeanor crime of violence committed—

A)    By a current or former spouse or intimate partner of the victim; 

B)     By a person with whom the victim shares a child in common;

C)     By a person who is cohabitating with, or has cohabitated with, the victim as a spouse or intimate partner;

D)    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

E)     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.

ii. For the purposes of complying with the requirements of this section and §668.41, any incident meeting this definition is considered a crime for the purposes of Clery Act reporting.

 

Drug Abuse 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.

 

Hate Crime – A crime reported to local police agencies or to a campus security authority that manifests evidence that the victim was intentionally selected because of the perpetrator’s bias against the victim. For the purposes of this section, the categories of bias include the victim’s actual or perceived race, religion, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, ethnicity, national origin, and disability.

 

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.

Larceny – Theft (Except Motor Vehicle Theft) - The unlawful taking, carrying, leading, or riding away of property from the possession or constructive possession of another. Attempted larcenies are included. Embezzlement, confidence games, forgery, worthless checks, etc., are excluded.

Liquor Law Violations - The violation of State or local laws or ordinances prohibiting the manufacture, sale, purchase, transporting, possession, or use of alcoholic beverages, not including driving under the influence and drunkenness.

Motor Vehicle Theft - The theft or attempted theft of a motor vehicle. (Classify as motor vehicle theft all cases where automobiles are taken by persons not having lawful access even though the vehicles are later abandoned – including joyriding.)

Other Assaults, Simple Not  Aggravated – 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.

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.

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.

Sexual Assault - An offense that meets the definition of rape, fondling, incest, or statutory rape as used in the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reporting program.

  • 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 is the touching of the private parts of another person for the purposes of sexual gratification, without the consent of the victim, including instances where the victim is incapable of giving consent because of their age or because of their temporary or permanent mental incapacity.
  • Incest is sexual intercourse between persons who are related to each other within the degrees wherein marriage is prohibited by law.
  • Statutory Rape is sexual intercourse with a person who is under the statutory age of consent.

Stalking -

(i) Engaging in a course of conduct directed at a specific person that would cause a reasonable person to –

(A) Fear for the person’s safety or the safety of others; or

(B) Suffer substantial emotional distress.

(ii) For the purpose of this definition –

(A) Course of conduct means 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.

(B) Reasonable person means a reasonable person under similar circumstances and with similar identities to the victim.

(C)  Substantial emotional distress means significant mental suffering or anguish that may, but does not necessarily, require medical or other professional treatment or counseling.

(iii) For the purposes of complying with the requirements of this section and section 668.41, any incident meeting this definition is considered a crime for the purposes of Clery Act reporting.


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.