Elected officials at all levels of government pass laws in response to issues that rise to the top of their policy agenda. Laws serve two functions: (1) symbolic and (2) substantive. The symbolic function of law includes such goals as reaffirming cherished values and showing that “something is being done” about a perceived social problem. The Clery Act1 is one such law. It appeases the interests of those who advocated for, or perhaps were interested in, its passage, regardless of its substantive impact. The substantive function of law, on the other hand, involves introducing changes that have demonstrable utility — changes that essentially help to alleviate or solve the problem the law addresses.