Photo of Chief Laura Wilson by Linda Cicero of the Stanford News Service.
BY ALLISON LEVITSKY
Daily Post Staff Writer
Reports of rapes and other sex offenses at Stanford increased in 2016 over the previous year, according to a report the university released yesterday (Sept. 29).
The numbers showed that in 2016, campus police received reports of 45 sexual offenses, including 33 rapes and 12 fondling incidents. In 2015, 39 sexual offenses were reported, including 25 rapes, two statutory rapes and 11 fondling incidents, one of which was determined to be unfounded.
Increases in such reports have occurred over the past few years. In 2014, 30 sexual offenses were reported, including 26 rapes and four fondling incidents. Campus officials said yesterday that they hoped the uptick was due to lower stigma about disclosing the incidents and greater awareness about reporting options.
Stanford’s annual Safety, Security and Fire Report provides statistics for reported incidents ranging from stalking to sex crimes that occur on campus and off, as is required by a federal law known as the Jeanne Clery Act. The university also must comply with Title IX, a federal law that prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex.
Reporting crimes
Stanford Department of Public Safety Director Laura Wilson encouraged victims to report sexual assaults to police immediately after the incident.
“Doing so ensures that evidence can be collected in a timely manner, which helps to preserve a victim’s options regarding the criminal and the Title IX pro- cess, or both,” said Wilson in a statement.
The crime data also show a decrease in alcohol arrests from last year. In 2016, 62 people were arrested on campus for violating liquor laws, down from 70 in 2015 but up from 38 in 2014. There were 19 arrests for drug violations, down from 20 in 2015 but up from seven in 2014.
