In recent years, the world has been reminded of the ever-present issue of sexual assault due to the misconduct of several Hollywood figures and the rise of the #MeToo movement. However, for every celebrity’s story, there are several that go untold.

BY THE NUMBERS

According to statistics from the U.S. Department of Education’s office of postsecondary education, which were corroborated by UAPD annual reports, The University of Alabama had 21 reported rapes in 2015, 21 in 2016, 22 in 2017 and 28 in 2018. These figures are “aggregated at the institutional level for all campuses,” meaning that it is the University’s responsibility to collect and report these numbers. 

Some argue, however, that these numbers don’t reflect the scope of the crime. According to the Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network (RAINN), the majority of sexual assault victims are under the age of 30, with ages 18-34 making up 56% of total victims. RAINN data also showed that male college students, aged 18-24, were five times more likely to be assaulted than non-students in that age range.

By these metrics, college students would be overrepresented in total rape cases for the region. But that’s not the case in Tuscaloosa. 

In Tuscaloosa County, the number of rapes in 2019 increased to 222 from 188 in the previous year, according to numbers given by Lt. Teena Richardson of the Tuscaloosa Police Department. This means that, in 2018, reported rapes by students (who make up about 20% of the county’s population and 40% of the city’s population) only accounted for 13% of the county’s total cases. 2019 UAPD rape records are not yet available, but they would have to be significantly higher than 2018 numbers to be in line with national metrics.

The underrepresentation in reported cases could mean a couple of things: UA students face less risk for sexual assault, or that there are several cases that aren’t being reported.

Judge John H. England Jr., the namesake of John H. England Jr. Hall, former Alabama Supreme Court Justice and a local judge for Tuscaloosa County, said that within the last three to four years he has presided over less than five rape cases that involved University of Alabama students. 

“Oftentimes cases are resolved before the case gets to me,” he said. 

This can be due to a myriad of factors, such as plea deals in which the perpetrator accepts a deal in order to speed up the legal process and possibly receive a lesser sentence. Another topic England covered was the sentencing difference between youthful offenders and those tried as adults in these cases.

For some victims, however, reporting isn’t an option in the first place.

One student, who said she was sexually assaulted after an Uber ride during her sophomore year, chose not to report the alleged assault. The student, who is a senior at the University, requested to be anonymous for her safety.

“He knew where I lived, and I was afraid if I reported it, he would come back,” she said.

According to the National Sexual Violence Resource Center (NSVRC), 1 in 5 women and 1 in 71 men will be raped at some point in their lives. But, at the end of the day, approximately 23% of rapes are reported to the police, according to RAINN. 

According to metrics from Tuscaloosa’s SAFE Center, however, reporting numbers are going up among its West Alabama patients who seek out medical care. After treatment, patients are given the option to report sexual crimes to the police department. For SAFE Center’s executive director, Brenda Maddox, full disclosures are important, as they help prevent rape from happening again. This year, the majority of patients opted to fully disclose reports, while only 18% sought out anonymous disclosure and as few as 13 patients opted against filing a report at all. 

“We think that number is good because the only way to stop rape is to identify and incarcerate the rapist,” Maddox told the UA Faculty Senate last month, noting that 74% of patients opted to fully disclose reports. 

YOUTHFUL OFFENDERS

England also mentioned the impact of youthful offender status in sentencing. Youthful offender status can be granted to someone who is under the age of 21. The maximum sentence of youthful offenders is three years, whereas an adult tried of the same crime would receive a minimum sentence of 10 years with a possibility of life imprisonment.

Under the statute, the youthful offender is not actually “convicted” of a crime. This does not affect their future employment, nor does it impede on any of their rights, and after their “sentence” is completed (whether it be incarceration or probation), the record is not open to public inspection except with the court’s permission.

This means that, in Alabama, a student under the age of 21 who commits a crime of this nature could receive only a three-year sentence, which would be virtually wiped from their record.

Among the cases that England has presided over the past few years involving UA students was the case of a student who was stalked on the way home by a stranger and sexually assaulted. England called the rape of a victim by a stranger as one of the “most egregious” forms of sexual assault. 

A majority of assaults, however, are carried out by acquaintances of the victim. According to National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) statistics, 51.1% of female victims report being raped by an intimate partner and 40.8% by an acquaintance. Among males, 52.4% of victims report being raped by an acquaintance and 15.1% by a stranger.

England said that, of the cases he’s seen involving rape of UA students, alcohol was a common characteristic. Among the places where alcohol is typically served is fraternity parties, where some people would say a lot of these claims seem to originate. 

RESOURCES

Mike Tindle, founder of recently established Tau Kappa Epsilon and a junior majoring in criminal justice and psychology, believes that both the fraternity and the University are responsible for combating sexual assault. 

“[It’s] one of those things that’s just swept under the rug,” he said.

Though the University offers educational resources such as Harbor to every incoming freshman, Tindle stated that more emphasis should be directed toward fraternities. He’d like to see the University provide presentations, such as the one he’s working to implement in his fraternity, to new pledge classes in an effort to better educate the student body and reduce these crimes.

For the anonymous student, more UA resources should be directed toward safe transportation.

“If the University is in charge of drivers, then I feel like it could stop the Uber issue,” she said. “Maybe have the Crimson Rides come back … I feel like less people have been using them now that they only drop off at the bus station. I feel like it was very helpful before to get from frat houses to anywhere that you need on campus, bars, because they had a pickup station near Publix.”

Resources for Students:

Women and Gender Resource Center: (205) 348-5040, [email protected]

Victim Advocate on-call 24hr, 

UA Counseling Center: (205) 348-3863

Student Health Center: (205) 348-6262

Title IX Office: (205) 348-5496

Off-Campus:

Tuscaloosa SAFE Center: 205-860-SAFE (7233)

Turning Point: 205-758-0808