Skip to Content, Navigation, or Footer.
A spirit that is not afraid

Crime reports show sexual-offense increase

Auburn University ranked fifth in forcible sexual acts reported on campus among SEC schools, according to a compilation of annual crime and safety reports released by universities in compliance with the Clery Act.
The 1986 rape and murder of freshman Jeanne Clery in her Lehigh University dorm led to Congress passing the Clery Act in 1990.
The Clery Act requires universities to publish their crime statistics Oct. 1 every year.
In the past three years, the number of reported forcible sexual acts has increased from an average of five in 2011 to an average of 9.36 in 2012.
A forcible sexual act is any sex act that occurs without both parties' consent, according to the Auburn University Annual Security and Fire Safety Report.
Auburn disclosed 12 forcible sexual acts on campus, up from two reported in 2011 and 2012.
Vanderbilt University topped the category for the past three years with 17 forcible sexual acts reported in 2013, 13 reported in 2012 and 12 reported in 2011.
Across all 14 SEC schools, there were 131 reported forcible sexual acts in 2013.
Paul Register, chief of the Auburn Police Division, said although the police reported two sexual assaults at off-campus locations, no reports of on-campus sexual assaults came from the Police Division.
"The reports could be second or third hand information reported to a Campus Security Authority," Register said.
Register added Campus Security Authorities are not always members of law enforcement under the Clery Act.
"They could be anyone in a position of authority that can take a report from a student, including, staff and professors," Register said.
A rise in the statistic may be because of an increase in people coming forward, according to Susan McCallister, associate director with Auburn University's Department of Public Safety and Security.
"We've really worked hard with students to get more people coming forward," McCallister said.
National attention about sexual assaults on campuses and increased education on consent, sexual assault response and bystander intervention may have also helped increase awareness, according to McCallister.
McCallister also encouraged any victims of crimes immediately to call police by dialing 911.
"Victims of sexual assault, domestic violence, dating violence and stalking are also encouraged to contact Safe Harbor to connect with advocates who can provide support and information on numerous resources available on and off campus for survivors," McCallister said.
According to Elizabeth Stone, communications specialist for Safe Harbor, Health Promotion and Wellness Services, the organization puts on training programs for sexual assault prevention for new students during Camp War Eagle and manages Auburn's Safe Harbor program.
"No sexual assault number is acceptable," Register said.
Other crime statistics were disclosed in the reports, such as the number of alcohol and drug-related arrests.
Auburn reported 22 alcohol violations that led to an arrest and 295 alcohol violations that went before Student Conduct.
Auburn also reported 33 drug-related arrests on campus putting it in the 11th spot in that category.
Kentucky reported 108 drug-related arrests, giving it the highest spot in the SEC.
Vanderbilt had 153 drug violations going before student discipline and 13 reported drug-related arrests.
New to the 2013 Clery reports was the addition of the categories for domestic violence, dating violence and stalking.
Alabama disclosed 10 reports of dating violence, the highest in the SEC, while Auburn, Arkansas, South Carolina, Tennessee and Mississippi State reported no instances of dating violence.
The University of Mississippi reported a "not available" instead of a figure.
Auburn had the sixth-highest reports of domestic violence with five.
University of Kentucky and University of Missouri tied at third with 11 reports each of domestic violence.
Auburn had the sixth-highest reports of domestic violence, tying at third with 11 domestic violence reports each.


Share and discuss “Crime reports show sexual-offense increase” on social media.