Pennsylvania Act 1994-87 — COLLEGE AND UNIVERSITY SECURITY INFORMATION ACT - AMEND

Act text

COLLEGE AND UNIVERSITY SECURITY INFORMATION ACT - AMEND
                  Act of Oct. 13, 1994, P.L. 591, No. 87              Cl. 24
                             Session of 1994
                               No. 1994-87

     SB 638

                                  AN ACT

     Amending the act of May 26, 1988 (P.L.448, No.73), entitled "An
        act requiring institutions of higher education to provide
        students and employees with information relating to crime
        statistics and security measures and to provide similar
        information to prospective students and employees upon
        request; granting powers to the State Board of Education; and
        providing for penalties," adding definitions; and providing
        for daily logs of college and university police and security
        department activities and for public access to the daily
        logs.

        The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
     hereby enacts as follows:

        Section 1.  Section 2 of the act of May 26, 1988 (P.L.448,
     No.73), known as the College and University Security Information
     Act, is amended by adding definitions to read:
      Section 2.  Definitions.
        The following words and phrases when used in this act shall
     have the meanings given to them in this section unless the
     context clearly indicates otherwise:
        * * *
        "Campus police."  Employees of an institution of higher
     education who exercise powers of arrest under authority of law
     or ordinance.
        "Campus security officers."  Employees of an institution of
     higher education, other than campus police, who are charged with
     maintaining the safety and security of the property of the
     institutions and the persons on the property.
        * * *
        "Investigative information."  Information that is assembled
     as a result of the performance of any formal or informal inquiry
     into a criminal incident or an allegation of criminal
     wrongdoing. The term may include modus operandi information.
        * * *
        "Valid complaint."  Any complaint received by a campus police
     or campus security department which results in an investigation
     or for which an entry is made in an incident report, log or
     blotter.
        Section 2.  Section 3 of the act is amended by adding
     subsections to read:
      Section 3.  Crime statistics and security policies and
                    procedures.
        * * *
        (b.1)  Daily logs and public records.--The campus police or
     campus security officers of each institution of higher education
     shall develop and maintain a daily log as a public record.
     Entries in the log shall be chronologically recorded in a manner
     that can be easily understood and shall include the following:
            (1)  A report of each valid complaint and all reports of
        crimes received by the campus police or campus security
        officers and the responses thereto. Except as provided in
        paragraph (2), names and addresses shall not be included in
        the daily log. This prohibition need not preclude the use of
        words, numbers, phrases or other similar index keys in the
        logs to serve as indices to investigative information.
            (2)  The names and addresses of persons arrested and
        charged and the charges filed against those persons.
            (3)  A description of the disposition of the charges
        filed under paragraph (2), to be entered when and if
        reasonably available.
        (b.2)  Arrests by State, county or local police.--For arrests
     made by State, county or local police on campuses of
     institutions of higher education, the applicable police
     department shall provide to the institution of higher education
     without cost the names and addresses of persons arrested and the
     charges filed against those persons for inclusion in the daily
     logs required under this act.
        (b.3)  Information concerning juveniles.--Nothing in this act
     shall be construed to apply to information concerning juveniles,
     except as provided in 18 Pa.C.S. § 9123 (relating to juvenile
     records), unless they have been adjudicated as adults.
        (b.4)  Entries to be public records.--All entries in the
     daily logs shall, except as provided in subsection (b.3) and as
     otherwise provided by law, be public records available without
     cost for examination and inspection by the public during regular
     business hours and at all other reasonable times. The
     institutions of higher education may charge a reasonable fee for
     the cost of copies, photographs or photostats.
        * * *
        Section 3.  The State Board of Education may, in the manner
     provided by law, promulgate the rules and regulations necessary
     to carry out this act.
        Section 4.  This act shall take effect in 90 days.

     APPROVED--The 13th day of October, A. D. 1994.

     ROBERT P. CASEY