Frequently Asked Questions

The U.S. Department of Education's Campus Safety and Security Data Analysis Cutting Tool site provides data on violent and other crimes reported to campus security authorities and/or local law enforcement agencies.

Find additional data in Crime in the United States, an annual report from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).

Also visit the Crime Victimization: Campus Crime section of the Office for Victims of Crime (OVC) website.

The Federal Trade Commission's IdentityTheft.gov website provides a comprehensive collection of resources for identity theft victims, including information on how to know if you're a victim and what steps should be taken if your identity has been stolen.

For additional information, visit the Identity Theft topic page section of the Office for Victims of Crime (OVC) website and the NCJRS online resource, In the Spotlight: Identity Theft.

We carefully consider all complaints. Upon receiving a complaint, OCR will determine whether it has jurisdiction to investigate the complaint and whether the complaint contains enough preliminary information to support a claim. If so, OCR will contact you and the agency that is the subject of the complaint to begin an investigation.

Yes. You should file your complaint as soon as possible. In some instances, you may have only 180 days after the alleged incident. In others, you may have at most one year after the alleged incident to file with OCR.

Yes. On request, we will do our best to keep all information confidential. However, we strongly encourage complainants to also sign and submit an Identity Release Statement. This allows OCR to release a complainant's name to the agency that is the subject of the complaint. Although submitting the IRS is not required, its absence often constrains OCR's investigation so much that it must close the complaint.

Civil rights laws prohibit agencies that receive Justice Department funding from retaliating against you. A retaliation claim stands independent from the underlying discrimination claim. If you believe you have been the target of retaliation, you should file a complaint with us.

An example would be the failure of a funded correctional facility to provide interpreter services to hearing-impaired inmates. Another example would be a funded police department's practice of stopping and interrogating, without cause, all Hispanic males driving on a particular highway.

An example would be a policy that prefers males over females in recruiting entry-level patrol officers.

Unfortunately, OCR is unable to assist you in finding legal representation. However, the Legal Services Corporation, a federally funded program to assist low-income people, is often a valuable resource. The Legal Services Corporation website includes information on how to contact a legal aid office near you.

No. OCR attorneys do not represent individual complainants nor give individual legal advice.