Holding Liberty Liable: Why Clery Act Fines Are Getting So Big and How Colleges Can Avoid Them

On March 5, 2024, the U.S. Department of Education issued Liberty University a $14 million fine over its violation of the Clery Act for its handling of sexual assault allegations. Liberty also violated the Clery Act in 2010, and the latest review found the school failed to initiate and sustain remedial action from those findings.The penalty is the largest Clery fine in history, dwarfing the Department's second-largest $4.5 million fine levied against Michigan State University in 2019 over its systemic failure to address longstanding sexual abuse allegations made against former sports doctor Larry Nassar. Before that, the largest fine was $2.4 million against Penn State in 2016 for its mishandling of abuse claims against former assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky. The increase from 2019 to 2024 begs the question: Why have Clery violation fines grown exponentially in recent years?In this interview, Kyle Norton, director of regulatory compliance at the Healy+ Group, and Jenn Scott, a regulatory compliance consultant, share:Why Clery Act fines have gotten so big (00:52)Common Clery Act violations (02:34)Why higher reported crimes aren't necessarily a bad thing (05:31)What Clery-compliant schools are doing right (09:07)Advice on how campuses can keep up with the many requirements of the Clery Act (11:41)What to expect from their upcoming 2024 Campus Safety Conference presentation, "$37 Thousand or $37 Million? The New Cost of Violating the Clery Act" (13:54)CAMPUS SAFETY SOCIAL MEDIA LINKS:● Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/campussafetymagazine● Twitter: https://twitter.com/CampusSafetyMag● Instagram: https://instagram.com/campussafetymag● LinkedIn Group: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/1836305/● YouTube:  @CampussafetymagazineCAMPUS SAFETY SOCIAL MEDIA LINKS: Facebook: https://facebook.com/CampusSafetyMagazineX: https://x.com/CampusSafetyMagInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/CampusSafetyMagLinkedIn Group: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/1836305YouTube: @Campussafetymagazine