POINT: University needs special unit dedicated to sexual assault
Last week, Harvard graduate Alyssa Leader filed a lawsuit against her alma mater claiming that the university failed to abide by Title IX, showing “deliberate indifference” to her reports of sexual assault, abuse and harassment.
Unfortunately, Leader isn’t alone. The sobering fact that one in four women will experience sexual assault at some point in her college career unfortunately hasn’t improved in recent years. Neither has the fact that 20 percent of college students identified sexual misconduct as an extremely problematic issue on their campuses. This figure is succeeded by nearly 30 percent of female USC students who have experienced sexual assault at our university, according to the campus climate survey.
Given these studies, as well as the numerous reports of sexual misconduct from students at colleges across the nation, it is clear that we must alter the ways in which we address sexual assault on college campuses. And perhaps one of the best and most expedient ways to do this is through the development of university police department units dedicated exclusively to sexual assault cases.
Presently, the way universities are tasked with addressing sexual misconduct on campus as required by federal law is inadequate. From the failure to address students’ needs to the underreporting of sexual assault cases, universities nationwide have been under heavy scrutiny. But this doesn’t mean that universities can’t and shouldn’t be involved in dealing with cases of sexual assault. In fact, both university administrations and police departments — such as USC’s Department of Public Safety — are uniquely qualified to address the needs of their campus and their students. Though USC already has a task force focused on sexual misconduct prevention — which consists of five committees focused on issues including sexual assault policy and gender violence — this is a far cry from a special task force within DPS itself, which is tasked with conducting sexual assault investigations. Given its knowledge of both the student body and the campus as a whole, every university’s DPS-counterpart should establish a special task force dedicated to addressing issues of sexual misconduct on campus.
Universities aren’t just bound by the law to provide a safe academic space for their students — they are paid to do so. Each year, we as students pay thousands of dollars in tuition which goes, in part, to campus security. Students can and should expect that they are paying for both a quality education and a safe academic environment, and universities have an obligation to provide both.
Though some might argue that cases of sexual misconduct are best left to the police, such an attitude fails to address the criminal justice system’s own limitations and failures with regard to addressing cases of sexual assault. The fact is that only a small fraction of victims come forward and report sexual assault. Of these few, even fewer turn to the criminal justice system in fear of skepticism, abuse or retaliation. This reality is made worse by the fact that the criminal justice system isn’t infallible. According to the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network, approximately 32 of every 100 rapes are reported to the police, and of which only seven lead to arrest, three to prosecution and two to conviction. Leaving students with only one course of action such as relying on the Los Angeles Police Department isn’t a solution that best serves students.
The criminal justice system isn’t just imperfect — it is also slow. Whereas police investigations take time and don’t always address the immediate needs of the victim, universities have the unique ability to act significantly faster to ensure the well-being of their students. This includes everything from providing academic accommodations such as dorm or class transfers to more serious action, including the suspension or expulsion of the offenders.
And just as the criminal justice system isn’t perfect, neither are the laws that govern it. Some states have yet to acknowledge survivors of sexual assault committed by women or by individuals of the same gender as victims of an actual crime. Universities, however, are legally obligated to address every reported case of sexual assault, regardless of who the offender or the victim is. By removing universities from the equation, we could also be removing a student’s only resource.
Universities’ approaches to dealing with sexual assault is not perfect — far from it. Neither, unfortunately, is the approach of local law enforcement. But universities owe it to their students to do more to properly and expediently address cases of sexual assault, as opposed to simply leaving the job to the police. Students deserve to have more than one resource at their disposal — including their universities. With one in four students at risk, one resource simply isn’t enough.
Yasmeen Serhan is a senior majoring in international relations. “Point/Counterpoint” runs Tuesdays.