The University of Texas (UTA), Arlington is facing a federal fine of $82,500 for serious violations including publishing false crime statistics for 2008 and the failure to report a sexual assault.
"These failures have endangered UTA's students and employees who must be able to rely on the disclosures of campus crime statistics, policies and statements, and the accurate reporting of crime and statistics in order to take precautions for their safety," stated an April 2 letter from the U.S. Department of Education.
Kristin Sullivan, UTA spokeswoman, said that the fine was levied after a December 2011 letter of the Department of Education (DOE) mentioned about UTA police inappropriately listing and collating several 2008 crime reports.
The Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act requires higher education institutions that participate in federal student financial aid to report campus crimes in an Annual Safety Report.
Noncompliance can result in large penalties and campuses can also be suspended from financial aid programs.
One of the misreported cases was described as merely an assault instead of a forcible sexual assault. The victim alleged that an unknown male caught hold of her thigh and female sensitive areas through her clothing.
In their defense, the university claimed that based on their internal investigation, the nature of the crime was accounted correctly.
This argument was included along with other responses in a 14-page file, February 2011, in reply to Department of Education's charges.
Another misrepresented incident involved a fight between two roommates that included hitting one another, verbal threats, one roommate tearing out hair and earrings and another one threatening to hang him over a lighted stove burner.
The incident was apparently marked as an assault of a family member in lieu of aggravated assault. The university has owned up to the misrepresentation.
These two incidents did not feature in UTA's annual security report and crime statistics for 2008.
In addition to these assaults, UTA is accused of failing to notify seven liquor law violations, 16 drug law violations and four weapons law violations.
Later, the university made changes to the Annual Safety Report and resubmitted it to the Department of Education, January 2012.
In order to stop repeating the same mistakes, Sullivan said that the campus police introduced a new computer software system, February 2009, to help officer's record incidents and offense reports for annual reporting.
