Police speak about assault
by Robert Barowski, Reporter

 

    Rape is called the most under-reported crime in America, Lt. Grady Patterson of the TCC Campus police said on the NE Campus earlier in March in a presentation about sexual assault .
     Sexual assault, simply put, is rape, the act of unlawful sexual intercourse by force or threat. There are two different types of rape or sexual assault: date rape and acquaintance rape.
     According to a 1997 FBI crime report, a rape is reported once every five minutes. As one sits in an hour-long class, 20 assaults could be reported.
     "Sexual assault is one of the most violent and least reported crimes in the United States,"Patterson said.
     Patterson focused the program on sexual assault at colleges. His intention was to give TCC students who plan on transferring to a four-year school vital information on what could happen.
     At the time that people say they were raped, 22 percent of the victims were under the age of 12, 54 percent were under 18 and 83 percent were under 25.
     Statistics show that a higher percentage of rapes happen during breaks, such as holiday breaks or spring break, anytime there are fewer people on campus.
     Of all the rapes committed, 11.8 percent of college women reported the act. Of those victims, 15.3 percent had actually been raped, 84 percent knew their assailant and 86 percent of the acts happened off campus. Nine out of 10 college rape victims knew the attacker. "I hope it never happens to any of you, " he said.
     When a person is raped, afterwards, it is important to get to a safe place, contact a trusted friend, report the assault and get medical attention quickly. It's also crucial to resist the urge to bathe or otherwise clean up, Peterson said. If a victim decides to bathe or shower, she could destroy any evidence the police could acquire through samples of the aggressor's DNA.
     The act of rape is, in most cases, a violent one. The amount of force used ranges from arm-twisting to physically pinning the person down. In reported rape cases involving college students, 9 percent of attacks involved hitting or beating and 5 percent involved weapons such as knives or guns. Of the women being assaulted, 84 percent resisted verbally, 70 percent physically struggled and 5 percent reported the incident to the police. Patterson said the key is to do what one has to do in order to stay alive.
     Patterson also presented information on how students could protect themselves against being raped or sexually assaulted. Students are urged to be aware of what is going on around them, walk with confidence, walk only in well-lit areas, be extra careful in parking structures, stairwells and elevators and use escorts such as campus police if possible. Peterson said several outlets for help and treatment are available for sexual assault victims.
     People can contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673) or online at www.rainn.org.