16 - The Michigan Daily - Wednesday, June 5, 1996
W.14
I Hu F o c t is,
A ew bi ami era8'n s teb
R 'g
. a y ( t v7k k
Congress has scheduled a hearing tomorrow in
House Subcommittee on Postsecondary Educati
Training and Life-Long Learning to introduce The O
Campus Security Logs Act of 1995 (HR 2416).
If passed, this bill would amend the campus secui
provisions of the Higher Education Act of 1965, fo
ing all institutions with police or security departme
to keep a daily log, which would hold records of
crimes reported that day in chronological order. E
record would be required to include the details of
crime such as names and addresses of any par
arrested and charged with the offense. Witness
suspect names would not
hase to be included.
"One of the intentions One of
is to make sure schools
do not conceal any make
information from the
public," said Jenna do not c
Santangell, a representa- info mai
tive for Security On 5 $
Campus, Inc., a nation- pu lic
al, non-profit organiza-
tion geared toward pre-
venting campus vio-
lence. "This would allow SE
information to be seen
by anyone on campus just as you can do in any lc
police office."
Similar laws already exist in seven states includ
Massachusetts, Tennessee, Oklahoma, California, V
Virginia, Minnesota and Pennsylvania.
"There needs to be a set protocol - hopefully wi
federal law it will improve and schools will be a 1
more open about crime," said Michigan Stud
Assembly President Fiona Rose.
PUniversity Crime f=o .
Here are the percent Destruction
increases and decreases in Theft of Prmerty/ t1
seven crime categories on from vandalism
campus between 1994 and
2 995.
S-16 -8 "3s -1
v's .1 ~ )j ~Assault
Four rapes and no murders were
Robbery reported to the Department of Public
Safety in 1995. A total of 4,517
offenses were reported to DPS in 1995,
f y RArson compared with 3 808 in 1994.
MATTHEW SMART/a
the Nick Roumel, a representative for Student Legal this bill will make it so they are,"-Bonner said.
on, Services, said the bill sounds like a good idea but he said While some universities currently keep logs, many of
pen he was concerned about privacy for those arrested. "This them do not allow the public to see them.
needs to be balanced against peoples' privacy concerns," "They're very suspicious of people who come in to see
rity Roumel said. the logs - they give them a hard time aboutit,"
rc- Elizabeth Hall, a spokesperson for the University's Santangell said. "The information would be more acces-
nts Department of Public Safety, said DPS will not have to sible with this bill."
all change its protocol if the bill is adopted as a federal law. Santangell said the logs would have to include any vio-
ach "We're basically already doing what the law provides lation of the Unis ersity's code of conduct as well as fed-
the for," she said. eral, state or local laws.
ties Hall said DPS has offered open police logs since "This would include anyone arrested during Iash Bash
and about 1988. "We give information every day on what or the Naked Mile:' ,Santange'l said.
happens on this campus Rep. Lynn Rivers (D-Ann arbor) said she supports the
we report everything idea of the bill. "Having information on any given cam-
int from unlocks to larceny to pus is useful," Rivers said.
requests for emergency Rivers said she had not spoken with Duncan about the
su e sc o aid - and their times and bill, but said the bill might be a response to a lack of
locations." she said. information on college campuses regarding the reporting
ceal any "We beliese it's really of rapes and sexual assaults.
important to share infor- Hall said DPS reports all the rape and sexual assault
n from t mation with the cases reported. to the department. "SAPAC's numbers
University community:' may look different from our numbers, but that's because
Hall said. not everyone reports incidents of rape or sexual assault to
- Jenna Santangell Hall said currently vic- the police," she said.
- tims' names and suspects' Santangell said that colleges routinely coverup
ecurity On Campus, Inc, names are withheld from crime information to protect the school's image.
the logs - they are only "Some schools provide only vague information in
tcal included if a warrant has been issued or an arrest has an untimely fashion, making it useless to students
been made. and parents:" she said.
ling While the University may already be doing what the Santangell said enacting this proposal would help
Nest new bill proposes, many schools around the country are make colleges a safer place for everyone.
not. "Not all schools allow students to see their records - "Whenever you have a situation where students can
Ih a this will make it so they do," said Jeannie Bonner, Rep. learn more about their campus and feel safer there - it's
ittle John Duncan Jr.'s (D-Tennessee) legislative assistant. definitely a good thing," Rose said.
lent Duncan is sponsoring the bill. - Daily Managing Netiws Editor Jennifer Harvey
"Right now they are not required to keep logs open - contributed to this report.
(
'.y
S
Campus Crime Reports
Here are the number of reported crimes
at six Michigan universities in three
categories for 1994
U-M
MSU 3 Robbery
Wayne
State
EMU 3
WM 1 UM
U-M
MSU
Wayne
State
EMU
WMU
CM1U
9 Aggravated
Assault
- 7 1
3
4
lee Burglary
130
ATTHEvS TDaiy
A person gets arrested for smoking pot by Department of Public Safety officers at the 25th annual Hash Bash held April 6,
1996 on the Diag. If the Open Campus Police Logs Act becomes law, all information about such incidents at universities
around the country would have to be made available to the public.