Appendix I: Disruptive Activities on Campus or Property of Educational Institutions

Disruptive activity means:

1. Obstruction or restraining the passage of persons in an exit, entrance or hallway of any building;
2. Seizing control of any building or portion of a building for the purpose of interfering with any university-authorized activity;
3. Preventing or attempting to prevent by force or violence or the threat of force or violence, any lawful assembly authorized by the university;
4. Disrupting by force or violence or the threat of force or violence, a lawful assembly in progress; or
5. Obstructing or restraining the passage of any person at an exit or entrance to the university or property or attempting to prevent by force or violence or the threat of force or violence the ingress or egress of any persons to or from said property.

A lawful assembly is disrupted when any person in attendance is rendered incapable of participating in the assembly due to the use of force or violence or due to a reasonable fear that force or violence is likely to occur. A person violating any provisions of this section shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction can be fined not to exceed $200 or by confinement in jail for not less than ten days nor more than six months, or both.

Any person convicted of violating this section for the third time shall be ineligible to attend any school, college or university receiving funds from the State of Texas for a period of two years from the date of his or her third conviction.

This section shall not be construed to infringe upon any right of free speech or expression guaranteed by the Constitution of the United States or the State of Texas.

Maintaining Order on the Campuses or Facilities of State-Supported Institutions Subchapter

E-1. Section 51.231-51.244 Texas Education Code

51.231. Definition of Periods of Disruption

For purposes of this subchapter, a period of disruption is any period in which it reasonably appears that there is a threat of destruction to institutional property, injury to human life on the campus or facility, or a threat of willful disruption of the orderly operation of the campus or facility.

51.232. Identification of Persons on Campus

(a) During periods of disruption, as determined by the chief administrative officer of a state-supported institution of higher education, the chief administrative officer, or an officer or employee of the institution designated by him to maintain order on the campus or facility of the institution, may require that any person on the campus or facility present evidence of his identification, or if the person is a student or employee of the institution, his student or employee official institutional identification card, or other evidence of his relationship with the institution.

(b) If any person refuses or fails upon request to present evidence of his identification, or if the person is a student or employee of the institution, his student or employee official identification card, or other evidence of his relationship with the institution, and if it reasonably appears that the person has no legitimate reason to be on the campus or facility, the person may be ejected from the campus or facility.

51.233. Withdrawal of Consent to Remain on Campus

(a) During periods of disruption, the chief administrative officer of a campus or other facility of a state-supported institution of higher education, or an officer or employee of the institution designated by his to maintain order on the campus or facility, may notify a person that consent to remain on the campus or facility under the control of the chief administrative officer has been withdrawn whenever there is reasonable cause to believe that the person has willfully disrupted the orderly operation of the campus or facility and that his presence on the campus or facility will constitute a substantial and material threat to the orderly operation of the campus or facility.

(b) In no case shall consent be withdrawn for longer than 14 days from the date on which consent was initially withdrawn.

(c) Notification shall be in accordance with procedures set out in Section 51.234 of this code.

51.234. Notice of Withdrawal of Consent

When the chief administrative officer of a campus or other facility of a state-supported institution of higher education, or an officer or employee of the institution designated by him to maintain order on the campus or facility, decides to withdraw consent for any person to remain on the campus or facility, he shall notify that person in writing that consent to remain is withdrawn. The written notice must contain all of the following:

1. that consent to remain on the campus has been withdrawn and the number of days for which consent has been withdrawn, not to exceed 14;
2. the name and job title of the person withdrawing consent, along with an address where the person withdrawing consent can be contacted during regular working hours;
3. a brief statement of the activity or activities resulting in the withdrawal of consent;
4. and notification that the person from whom consent has been withdrawn is entitled to a hearing on the withdrawal not later than three days from the date of receipt by the chief administrative officer of a request for a hearing.

51.235. Report to Chief Administrative Officer

Whenever consent is withdrawn by any authorized officer or employee other than the chief administrative officer, the officer or employee shall submit a written report to the chief administrative officer within 24 hours, unless the authorized officer or employee has reinstated consent for the person to remain on the campus. The report must contain all of the following:

1. the description of the person from whom consent was withdrawn, including, if available, the person’s name, address, and phone number;
2. and a statement of the facts giving rise to the withdrawal of consent.

51.236. Confirmation of Withdrawal of Consent

(a) If the chief administrative officer or, in his absence, a person designated by him for this purpose, upon reviewing the written report described in Section 51.235, finds that there was reasonable cause to believe that the person has willfully disrupted the orderly operation of the campus or facility, and that his presence on the campus or facility will constitute a substantial and material threat to the orderly operation of the campus or facility, he may enter written confirmation upon the report of the action taken by the officer or employee.

(b) If the chief administrative officer, or in his absence, the person designated by him, does not confirm the action of the officer or employee within 24 hours after the time that consent was withdrawn, the action of the officer or employee shall be deemed void and of no force or effect, except that any arrest made during the period shall not for this reason be deemed not to have been made for probable cause.

51.237. Request for Hearing

(a) A person from whom consent has been withdrawn may submit a written request for a hearing on the withdrawal to the chief administrative officer within the 14-day period. The written request must state the address to which notice of hearing is to be sent. The chief administrative officer shall grant a hearing no later than three days from the date of receipt of the request and shall immediately mail a written notice of the time, place, and date of the hearing to the person.

(b) The hearing shall be held before a duly designated discipline committee or authorized hearing officer of the institution in accordance with Section 51.243. In no instance shall the person issuing the withdrawal notice or causing it to be issued serve on any committee where the validity of his order of withdrawal is in question.

51.238. Reinstatement of Consent to Remain on Campus

The chief administrative officer shall reinstate consent whenever he has reason to believe that the presence of the person from whom consent was withdrawn will not constitute a substantial and material threat to the orderly operation of the campus or facility.

51.239. Entering or Remaining on Campus After Withdrawal of Consent

(a) Any person who has been notified by the chief administrative officer of a campus or facility of a state-supported institution of higher education, or by an officer or employee designated by the chief administrative officer to maintain order on the campus or facility, that consent to remain on the campus or facility has been withdrawn pursuant to Section 51.233, who has not had consent reinstated, and who willfully and knowingly enters or remains upon the campus or facility during the period for which consent has been withdrawn, is guilty of a misdemeanor, and is subject to punishment as set out in Section 51.244.

(b) This section does not apply to any person who enters or remains on the campus or facility for the sole purpose of applying to the chief administrative officer or authorized officer or employee for the reinstatement of consent or for the sole purpose of attending a hearing on the withdrawal.

51.240. Authority to Suspend, Dismiss, or Expel Students or Employees Not Affected

This subchapter does not affect the power of the duly constituted authorities of a state-supported institution of higher education to suspend, dismiss, or expel any student or employee at the university or college.

51.241. Students and Employees Barred From Campus After Suspension or Dismissal

(a) Every student or employee who has been suspended or dismissed from a state-supported institution of higher education after a hearing, in accordance with procedures established by the institution, for disrupting the orderly operation of the campus or facility of the institution, as a condition of the suspension or dismissal, may be denied access to the campus or facility, or both, of the institution for the period of suspension, and in the case of dismissal, for a period not to exceed one year.

(b) A person who has been notified by personal service of the suspension or dismissal and condition and who willfully and knowingly enters upon the campus or facility of the institution to which he has been denied access, without the express written permission of the chief administrative officer of the campus or facility, is guilty of a misdemeanor and is subject to punishment as set out in Section 51.244.

(c) Knowledge shall be presumed if personal service has been given as prescribed in Subsection (b) of this section.

51.242. Refusing or Failing to Leave Building Closed to Public

No person may refuse or fail to leave a building under the control and management of a public agency, including a state-supported institution of higher education, during those hours of the day or night when the building is regularly closed to the public, upon being requested to do so by a guard, watchman, or other employee of a public agency, including a state-supported institution of higher education, controlling and managing the building or property, if the surrounding circumstances are such as to indicate to a reasonable person that the individual or individuals have no apparent lawful business to pursue.

51.243. Required Hearing Procedures

A person from whom consent to remain on the campus of a state-supported institution of higher education has been withdrawn in accordance with Section 51.233 is entitled, in addition to the procedures set out in Section 51.234, to the following:

1. to be represented by counsel;
2. to the right to call and examine witnesses and to cross-examine adverse witnesses;
3. to have all matters upon which the decision may be based introduced into evidence at the hearing in his presence;
4. to have the decision based solely on the evidence presented at the hearing;
5. to prohibit the introduction of statements made against him unless he has been advised of their content and the names of the persons who made them, and has been given the opportunity to rebut unfavorable inferences that might otherwise be drawn; and
6. to have all findings made at the hearing be final, subject only to his right to appeal to the president and the governing board of the institution.

51.244. Penalties

A person who violates Sections 51.239, 51.241, or 51.242 of this code is guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction is subject to a fine of not more than $500 or imprisonment in the county jail for not more than six months, or both.