THE
NORTHWEST MISSOURIAN
Thursday | September 25, 2014
V90 | N5
20 U.S.C. § 1681, et seq. Title IX: No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from
FIGHTING THE FACTS participation, in be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance. University officials work to White House change attitudes toward introduces reporting sexual assault ‘It’s On Us’ LAUREN MCCOY
Resources for sexual assault survivors
Managing Editor | @McCoy014
DARCIE BRADFORD Chief Reporter | @darcie_jeanne_7
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very two minutes, an American is sexually assaulted.
That adds up to about 237,868 victims of sexual assault each year, according to the Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network. Of those attacked, 80 percent are under the age of 18. As if those facts were not scary enough, RAINN goes on to say 97 percent of rapists will never see a day in prison. Sexual assault has been increasingly splashed across headlines and wired across the waves for the last several years and although Northwest has not been hit with any big cases, the issue is not unheard of. Earlier this month, a student reported a two-year-old sexual assault. According to the incident report, a female student reported that her former boyfriend conducted unwanted sexual activities with her during their relationship. She stated the actions “occasionally bothered or upset” her and further reported she would sometimes awake to his hands in “very inappropriate places.” Although she chose to disclose his name to the police, she did not opt to press charges, and identities are being withheld for the protection of both parties while the matter is investigated. *** Two years may seem like a long time to wait to report such an event, but according to University Police Chief Clarence Green, it really is not that strange. “A survivor of sexual assault needs time from the time of the initial incident,” Green said. “It’s not uncommon for there to be a delayed walk-in report.” From 2010-2012, eight accounts of forcible sex offenses were reported to University police. Whether the number is high or low, though, each one is more than just a number to University Police Lieutenant Ray Ottman. “Every report is important and we definitely want them followed through, and we do a lot of follow ups,” Ottman said. “But in this case, it
University Police 660.562.1254
Wellness Center 660.562.1348 Children and Family Center 660.562.2320 Hotline
1.800.656.4673 doesn’t end. It’s not a case where you can say, ‘okay, we’re done.’” Reporting a sexual assault sometimes begins in a counselor’s office or during late night discussions with friends. Others start with incident reports to university police, like Officer Kristina Martinez. “We never know when someone walks in and says, ‘I want to speak to an officer,’” Martinez said. “And they start to tell you what they’re there for … your brain blows up. You’ve got to open up every part and start absorbing and figure out how we’re going to address it.” Having the opportunity to address the issue, however, is part of the problem. According to the National Crime Victimization Survey, approximately 12 percent of the 283,200 annual rape or sexual assault victimizations between 2005 and 2010 resulted in an arrest at the scene or during a follow-up investigation. Green and his team said they hope to change those numbers by helping students understand that they have options. He emphasized how hard it is to convey to people how the process actually works, and although the department struggles to explain the procedure without scaring away potential reporters, he reassures individuals they are there to help begin the healing process.
SEE ASSAULT | A5
BRANDON ZENNER Editor in Chief | @brandonzenner
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orthwest and Student Senate are joining the White House on a public awareness and education campaign in an effort to change the national stigma around sexual assault on college campuses. President Obama and Vice President Biden launched “It’s On Us” Friday, in partnership with Generation Progress, along with student body leadership from nearly 200 colleges and universities across the country. Generation Progress is a leading promoter in progressive political and social policy through support for student activists and journalists on college campuses, and lobbies Congress and state governments on issues relevant to college students. Anne Johnson, executive director of Generation Progress, spoke about the “It’s On Us” launch during a teleconference Monday. “Our goal of this campaign is to both change culture nationally, but also to empower students on local campuses to be able to create campaigns and engage new people in the fight to end campus sexual assault,” Johnson said. “This is an all-handson-deck type campaign and we’re really going to change the way that we think about campus sexual assault … we all need to come together and shift the way that we think and talk about sexual assault and we need to engage more people in this work so that we can actually address this fight that’s moving forward.” During Friday’s launch, President Obama talked about the motivation to start the campaign. “ … to the survivors who are leading the fight against sexual assault on campuses, your efforts have helped to start a movement,” Obama said. “I know that … there are times where the fight feels lonely, and it feels as if you’re dredging up stuff that you’d rather put behind you. But we’re here to say, today, it’s not on you.” According to a White House press release, “It’s On Us” aims to fundamentally shift the way the public thinks about sexual assault by “inspiring everyone to see it as their responsibility to do something, big or small, to prevent it … ”
SEE IT’S ON US | A5
Public safety doles out delinquent drinking tickets JAMES HENDERSON III Chief Reporter | @jendersoniii
Maryville Public Safety handed out a large number of Minor in Possession tickets to underage drinkers late Saturday night. While Family Weekend is meant to be a time for families to become more acquainted with the town where they sent their kids, for some it is still just a weekend. Which means it is a
time for parties and alcohol. However, on Saturday night, Maryville Public Safety officers had a plan to catch underage drinking in the act. Maryville Public Safety recorded 38 arrests, with 33 being minor in possession charges, on Saturday night alone. Overall, the number of MIPs handed out was more than they anticipated. “We were a little alarmed by the
high incidence of arrests,” MPS director Keith Wood said. A few times per year, the department deploys special enforcement officers to stop underage drinking while it is happening. Wood said they assigned four officers to be a part of this task force. “Unlike a regular patrol officer, these four looked for specific alcohol related violations,” Wood said. “So they were sent to areas in town where
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we knew there would be a lot of foot traffic from people walking between parties.” During the weekend, several officers specifically focused on house parties to see alcohol consumption at its source and not just on the streets. The department does not want students to forget that all laws apply to everyone, even those related to alcohol. “Remember to drink responsibly,”
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Wood said, “and you are still a minor until you are 21.” Some students are having trouble believing that their only motive was to stop crime. “They definitely did it because it was family weekend,” freshman Shane Webb said. “They wanted to show the parents that underage drinking was not tolerated. They were definitely trying to prove a point.”