Private college records bill heads to governor's desk
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) - Campus police at private universities in Indiana would be required to release less on-campus crime information than their counterparts at public colleges under legislation heading to the governor.
The bill, unanimously approved Thursday by House conference committee, requires all of the state's 11 private colleges to release information from on-campus incidents that result in arrests or incarcerations for criminal offenses. The departments would have to report the time and location of an arrest, as well as the investigating officer, similar to what federal law requires of all public and private institutions.
But the agencies wouldn't have to report the incidents if no arrests are made, which is required of police departments on public university campuses.
The measure is backed by the Independent Colleges of Indiana and the University Notre Dame, which is currently involved in a disclosure lawsuit with ESPN after the school refused a records request for possible crimes involving student-athletes. Richard Ludwig, president of ICI, noted that the legislation would open records that currently aren't available to the public.
"It's really a leap forward in terms of public access and transparency," he said Friday.
But open-records advocates said the bill falls short. Stephen Key, executive director of the Hoosier State Press Association, said private colleges should be held to the same standard of crime reporting.
"If you are a student, or parent of a student, or community living around those private universities, you won't really have a good picture of what crime and how crime is occurring," Key said.
Under the bill, campus police departments as private universities and colleges would also get similar immunities granted to state police, such as from being sued or for causing damage or injury from enforcing the law.
"You are talking about people who have the authority to make arrests, deprive people of their liberty, authorized to carry and use firearms," Key said. "And to say for them, they should be able to be allowed to operate under a level of secrecy not allowed in any other police department, doesn't make a lot of sense from our view."
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