Clery

    The Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act, or Clery Act, is a federal statute that requires public and private colleges and universities that receive federal funding to maintain and disclose information about certain crimes that occur on or near campus. The Clery Act requires colleges and universities to: publish and disseminate an annual security report (ASR) to all current and prospective students and employees, including crime statistics for the prior three years, policy statements regarding various safety and security measures, descriptions of campus crime prevention programs, and procedures to be followed in the investigation of alleged sex offenses. Institutions must also maintain a public log of all reported crimes, report certain crime statistics to the Department of Education on an annual basis, and issue timely warnings with respect to crimes occurring on or near campus that represent an ongoing threat to campus safety.

    Some of the requirements of the Clery Act include: publication of the annual security report (ASR), documentation of crimes occurring in the Yale PD’s patrol area on the daily and supplemental crime log, documentation of crime stats on the Department of education website, and the issuance of warnings and alerts in certain instances to notify the community of potential threats to campus to campus safety.

    Geography

    View the YPD Campus map.

    The map shows YPD’s extended patrol area as defined below. Certain area within this extended patrol area is considered within Clery Act defined geography.

    Clery statistics include crime reports made at the following locations:

    • On-Campus: Property Yale owns or controls and is used in support of the academic mission located within a defined core campus area.
    • Campus Residential/On Campus Student Housing: Yale owned on campus student housing.
    • Public Property: The sidewalks and streets that traverse the campus and are immediately adjacent to the Yale campus.
    • Non-Campus: Yale owned or controlled buildings not located within the defined core campus area. These properties are used in direct support of or in a manner related to the institution’s educational purpose and are frequently used by students.
    • Yale West Campus: Located 7 miles west of downtown New Haven. Academic, research and storage facilities. Spans property located within West Haven and Orange, Connecticut.
    • Extended Patrol Area: The Yale Police Department (YPD) responds to calls for service on campus and within an extended patrol area as agreed upon by New Haven Police Department. YPD has primary responsibility for patrolling the Yale campus and also serves in a supportive role to the New Haven Police Department (NHPD) in an extended patrol area. The extended patrol area better helps support our shared community.
    • Patrol Zone: The Clery Act defined statistical reporting area. The statistical portion of the Annual Security Report reflects only Clery defined crimes reported to the YPD within Clery Act defined boundaries. The Clery defined boundaries are reviewed each year by YPD and the Office of the General Counsel.

    Crime Definitions

    View the Clery Crime Definitions page and the UCR NIBRS Offense Definitions.

    Campus Security Authorities

    View the Campus Security Authorities page.

    Related Policies

    View the Missing Student Notification Procedure.

    Daily Crime and Supplemental Crime Logs

    The Daily Crime and Supplemental Crime Log contains a listing of all crimes reported to YPD and all crimes brought to the attention of the YPD in an expanded patrol area. It will also contain crimes brought to the attention of YPD occurring on Clery defined non-campus locations (eg. Yale Bowl). The log contains the date the incident was reported and a brief summary of the incident. Crimes are entered on the log within two business days of being reported to the YPD.

    Reports that occur on weekends and university holidays are recorded on the next business day. The Fire Marshal’s Office maintains the Fire Log.

    Yale’s Annual Security Report on Campus Security and Fire Safety

    View Yale’s Campus Security and Fire Safety annual reports.

    Timely Warning and Public Safety Advisory

    View Timely Warning Messages

    Yale University alerts the campus community about any Clery reportable crime and other crime that is reported to Yale Public Safety, campus security authorities, or local police agencies, occurs within the Clery geography, and is considered to represent a serious or ongoing threat to students, faculty, and staff. The intent of the Timely Warning is to provide the community with information to enable people to protect themselves as well as aid in the prevention of similar crimes. The warning is disseminated as soon as pertinent information is available. Crimes reported exclusively to a pastoral or professional counselor are exempt from a Timely Warning notification.

    Public Safety Advisories are similar to Timely Warnings. Public Safety Advisories are issued on a case by case basis for crimes and incidents that are a concern to the Yale community but do not meet the Timely Warning guidance, requirements, or threshold.

    A review and Timely Warning or Public Safety Advisory determination is made by the Senior Vice President for Operations, the Yale Police Chief, and/ or the Assistant Yale Police Chief, who consult on a case-by-case basis to determine where the incident occurred and whether the incident represents a serious or ongoing threat to the campus community. For those incidents determined to constitute such a threat, the Yale Police Chief or Assistant Chief coordinates the content and initiates the systems to distribute a Timely Warning notification by e-mail to every member of the University community. Those e-mails are labeled with the readily identifiable subject line indicating if they are a Timely Warning or a Public Safety Advisory. For members of the Yale community without access to e-mail, these messages are posted in highly visible locations within the appropriate units. The substance of the Timely Warning is carefully determined. The information is provided to the community in a manner that is timely and withholds the name of the victim as confidential. If the information is known, and if the inclusion of such information would not compromise law enforcement efforts, Timely Warnings include the date and time of the incident, a description of the crime, its location, and physical injuries, if any, to the victim(s). In addition, the warnings generally include safety information that will aid in the prevention of similar occurrences, a request for any information about the incident, and a reminder to report crimes or concerns about a potential crime to YPD. In rare instances, warnings might include the identity of the suspect.

    The Yale Police Chief and his staff monitor all replies to these Timely Warning e-mails and respond as appropriate. An archive of recent Timely Warnings and Public Safety Advisories is posted on the Public Safety page. For more information, contact the YPD at 203-432-4400.

    Crime Stats

    NIBRS Reporting

    Beginning on January 1, 2021 the FBI mandated that law enforcement agencies who participate in the UCR reporting system transition from summary UCR reporting to NIBRS UCR reporting. NIBRS or National Incident Based Reporting System, is a more comprehensive platform to collect crime statistical data. NIBRS was implemented to improve the overall quality of crime data collected by law enforcement. NIBRS captures details on each single crime incident—as well as on separate offenses within the same incident—including information on victims, known offenders, relationships between victims and offenders, arrestees, and property involved in crimes. The prior SUMMARY UCR reporting system provided only an aggregate total of the crimes and used a hierarchy in reporting by compiling the higher of the crimes within the incident. Lesser offenses were rolled into the higher offense and not included. NIBRS is better able to provide context and circumstances to the crimes allowing for better analysis of the crime trends, response, and prevention planning.

    Monthly NIBRS Report

    The NIBRS Offense Count report provides information on crimes reported to the Yale Police Department and occurring on Yale property within Yale Police Department’s jurisdiction.

    Report notes:

    • Data source is RMS, the timeframe is January 1, 2021 through the date reflected on report.

    Crime Prevention Resources

    Contact

    For additional information on the Clery Act contact Lisa Skelly Byrnes at lisa.skelly-byrnes@yale.edu.