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Violence Against Women Act and Clery Act

The Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) amendments to the Clery Act expand the rights afforded to campus survivors of sexual assault, domestic violence, dating violence, and stalking. The Clery Act is a consumer protection law that aims to provide transparency around campus crime policies and statistics.

CLERY ACT CRIMES:

  • Murder / non-negligent manslaughter
  • Negligent manslaughter
  • Sex offenses: rape, fondling, incest, statutory rape
  • Robbery
  • Aggravated assault
  • Burglary
  • Motor vehicle theft
  • Arson
  • Arrests or judicial referrals for disciplinary action:
    • Liquor law violations
    • Drug law violations
    • Illegal weapons possession

     

VAWA CRIMES:

  • Sexual Assault
  • Domestic Violence
  • Dating Violence
  • Stalking

 

HATE CRIMES: Evidence that shows the victim was intentionally selected because of the victim’s actual or perceived race, gender, gender identity, religion, sexual orientation, ethnicity, national origin, or disability. If any of the following crimes occur due to bias, it will be counted as a hate crime: all Clery criminal offenses, larceny/theft, simple assault, intimidation, destruction, damage, or vandalism of property.

DOMESTIC VIOLENCE: Domestic violence includes 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.

DATING VIOLENCE: Violence committed by a person:

  1. Who is or has been in a social relationship of a romantic or intimate nature with the victim; and
  2. Where the existence of such a relationship shall be determined based on the reporting party’s statement and with consideration of the following factors:
  1. The length of the relationship.
  2. The type of relationship.
  3. The frequency of interactions between the persons involved in the relationship.

 

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

STALKING: Engaging in a course of conduct directed at a specific person that would cause a reasonable person to:

  1. Fear for the person’s safety or the safety of others; or
  2. Suffer substantial emotional distress.

 

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.

Stalking Behaviors include:

  • Non-consensual communication including in-person communication, telephone calls, voice messages, text messages, email messages, social networking site postings, instant messages, postings of pictures or information on web sites, written letters, gifts, or any other communications that are undesired and/or place another person in fear
  • Following, pursuing, waiting, or showing up uninvited at a workplace, place of residence, classroom, or other locations frequented by a victim
  • Surveillance and other types of observation, whether by physical proximity or electronic means
  • Trespassing
  • Vandalism
  • Non-consensual touching
  • Direct physical and/or verbal threats against a victim or a victim’s loved ones
  • Gathering of information about a victim from family, friends, co-workers, and/or classmates
  • Manipulative and controlling behaviors such as threats to harm oneself, or threats to harm someone close to the victim
  • Defamation or slander against the victim

 

CONSENT: Consent means that at the time of the act of sexual intercourse or sexual contact there are actual words or conduct indicating freely given agreement to have sexual intercourse or sexual contact.