Campus Security Authorities
What is the role of a Campus Security Authorities (CSA)?
The University of New Mexico Police encourages all members of the campus community to report crimes to us on a timely basis. However, under the Clery Act, CSAs are required to report Clery Act qualifying crimes which occurred on campus, in public areas bordering campus and in certain non-campus buildings owned or controlled (leased) by the University. CSAs should only report those crimes that have not been previously reported to University Police or another University CSA. The intent of including non-law enforcement personnel in the CSA role is to acknowledge that some community members and students, in particular, may be hesitant about reporting crimes to the police, but may be more inclined to report incidents to other campus-affiliated individuals.
For additional information on the Clery Act and CSA responsibilities, visit the Online Campus Security Authority Training at http://police.unm.edu
What makes you a CSA?
The law defines four categories of CSAs:
1. University Police Department sworn personnel and Department Administrators.
2. Non-police people of offices responsible for campus security. These CSAs have security presence or access control authority on university property, including, but not limited to, security guards, campus parking enforcement staff, student patrol officers, and security staff at athletic events.
3. The Officials with significant responsibility for student and campus activities category is defined broadly to ensure complete coverage and thorough reporting of crimes. To determine which individuals or organizations are CSAs consider job functions that involve relationships with students. Look for Officials (i.e., not support staff) whose functions involve relationships with students. An Official is defined as any person who has the authority and the duty to take action or respond to particular issues on behalf of the University. If someone has significant responsibility for student and campus activities, s/he is a CSA. Some examples of CSAs in this category include, but are not limited to: deans, student affairs professionals, student housing staff, athletic director/assistant directors, coaches, student activities coordinators, student judicial officers, and faculty/staff advisors to student organizations.
4. Any individual or organization specified in an institution's statement of campus security policy as an individual or organization to which students and employees should report criminal offenses - University Police.
Who is not a CSA?
The following non-CSA positions/functions include but are not limited to: administrative staff members who are not responsible for students, clerical staff, individual faculty with no student activity duties outside the classroom, doctors at University of New Mexico Hospital, or counselors in the Counseling Center who only provide care to individual students.
CSA Crime Reporting
CSA Crime Reporting - When a crime is reported to a CSA, first ask the person if they would like to report it to University Police. If so, contact University Police at 505-277-2241. If the CSA has firsthand knowledge and confirmation that the reporting party filed a police report with University Police, then they are not obligated to complete and submit a Campus Security Authority Crime Report Form. However, if the reporting party says they will file a police report with University Police, leaving the CSA with no firsthand knowledge and confirmation that a police report was filed, then the CSA must still complete and submit a CSA Crime Report.
CSAs are encouraged to report all crimes reported to them, on a timely basis, to University Police via a CSA Crime Report Form. However, under the Clery Act, only Clery Act qualifying crimes are required to be reported. The CSA Crime Report Form is submitted to the University Police Department online.
If the reported crime is made in good faith, meaning that there is reasonable basis for believing that the information is not rumor or hearsay, then the crime is Clery reportable. CSAs, when interacting with the crime reporting party, need to gather incident information that would provide sufficient detail to properly classify the incident. This means CSAs need to document reporting party responses or lack thereof. Reporting party identifying information should only be included in the Report Form if the reporting party is willing to provide same (see Anonymous Reporting section below). CSAs should not investigate the crime or attempt to determine whether a crime, in fact, took place. When in doubt, a Report Form should be completed and submitted!
Anonymous Reporting
The University Police Department, unless otherwise prescribed by law, does not take anonymous police reports. The exception related to anonymous reporting involves Campus Security Authorities. The University of New Mexico permits victims or witnesses to report crimes to CSAs on a voluntary, anonymous basis (and includes such anonymous reports in reported Annual Security Report crime totals) but encourages individuals who report crime to provide identifying information.
What do I tell a reporting party?
The following is a sample of what you can tell a reporting party who comes to you to report a crime: "As part of my position on campus I am a federally mandated crime reporter for the University. I am required to report of this incident to University Police for data gathering. If you request confidentiality, the Report Form will not include your name, or that of any other involved individuals. My report will contain only the information you provide. Do you have any questions? Would you like to help me fill it out?"
CSA Training
You can access the Campus Security Authority training through our online learning site. To access the training (s), please visit the appropriate following link:
For UNM Faculty and Staff: https://learningcentral.health.unm.edu/learning/user/login.jsp
For Non UNM employees, volunteers and Students: https://police.unm.edu/default.aspx/MenuItemID/220/MenuGroup/Public+Home.htm
What is done with CSA Reports?
The University Police reviews CSA reports and makes a determination if an incident warrants timely warning and/or emergency notification of the University community and whether it is a reportable crime in the Annual Security Report (ASR). The police department will consolidate crime data from multiple sources, report qualifying crime data to the federal Department of Education, publish campus ASRs and inform the campus community when and where ASRs are available. The University of New Mexico Annual security report is available online: http://police.unm.edu. Members of the community may also request a paper copy from the University of New Mexico Police Department.
Crime / Emergency and Non-Emergency Reporting
Regardless of your status (CSA or non-CSA), all community members are encouraged to promptly report all criminal incidents and other public safety related emergencies to police. For incidents requiring immediate attention, dial 911 or use any Emergency Phone located throughout the campus. Non-emergency incidents can be reported by dialing 505-277-2241 from any phone or in person at the University of New Mexico Police Department – Hokona Hall at 2500 Campus NE, Albuquerque, New Mexico.
CSA Contact Information
If you have questions, contact Deputy Chief/Interim Clery Coordinator Christine Chester at 505-277-1934, email clerycoordinator@unm.edu
