NCJ Number
130709
Journal
Campus Law Enforcement Journal Volume: 21 Issue: 2 Dated: (March/April 1991) Pages: 16-19
Date Published
1991
Length
4 pages
Annotation
This article examines the authority and roles of campus police as enforcers of both school regulations and civil and criminal law.
Abstract
The right of institutions of higher education to initiate disciplinary procedures against students is well established, but such institutions do not have the power to try a student in criminal matters. This does not mean, however, that colleges cannot conduct student disciplinary hearings in association with incidents that involve criminal and civil charges. The college can act independently of any criminal proceedings, but it runs certain risks if it conducts a disciplinary hearing prior to a criminal adjudication. Participants and evidence in the hearing are subject to being subpoenaed for the criminal proceedings, and the student defendant will have the advantage of hearing evidence and witnesses against him/her prior to the criminal trial. Another risk in a disciplinary hearing prior to criminal adjudication is that the hearing officers determine to discipline a student who is subsequently found not guilty of the charges. When campus police are involved in controlling incidents that involve both a violation of school regulations and the criminal law, the campus police should properly report the incident to their employers, the school administration. The school authorities should then in turn instruct the campus police to file criminal charges with the local prosecutor. Failure to do so causes the school officials and the officer to risk being charged as accessories after the fact.