Disappearance, and sexual assault have become a common thing to see on the news in this day and age, especially on college campuses. With perpetrators secretly giving their victims date rape drugs, feeding them alcohol, and stalking their victims to know at which points of the day they are most vulnerable, college campuses could be considered almost a hunting ground for predators.
When it comes to disappearances, one of the country's most talked about cases happened just 45 minutes South of Mooresville. In the case of Lauren Spierer, it started out as an innocent night of fun in the college town of Bloomington, but turned horribly wrong when Spierer went missing in the wee hours of June 3, 2011. Between the hours of 12:30 p.m. and 4:30 a.m. Spierer had a night filled with friends and drinking. The last known sighting of Spierer was at 4:30 a.m. when she left a friend's apartment, to return to her own.
According to fastweb.com’s 10 tips for college students, it is best to use the buddy system, especially at night, when needing to go somewhere. Also, know where the emergency call buttons are on your campus, if they are provided. Most colleges have installed these call buttons in various locations on their campus’.
“You have to be proactive in everything you do, even if you’re comfortable with someone, don’t ever be alone with them,” said Brandy Sawyer. “Technology is so different now compared to when I was in college so now you can call someone while walking somewhere or at least text them and say “Hey I’ll be there in so many minutes” that way if you aren’t there in that amount of time someone knows something is wrong and they need to look for you.”
Sexual assault is also another thing that has become more frequent in college campus’. Beckett Brennan was an All-American high school basketball player, who received numerous scholarships from prestigious schools, and decided to accept a full ride scholarship to the University of the Pacific. After an exciting and accomplished freshman year, it was nearly summer time. One Saturday night, Brennan went to a party with some friends from the basketball team. A little later in the night she was offered a ride from three male basketball players, and accepted without hesitation.
The players took her back to where they were all going and proceeded to rape her. According
to CBSNews.com, 95% of victims who are raped on college campus’ do not report the assault, and Brennan was apart of that statistic. After the attack, she cried to get friends as she told them what happened, telling her friends nobody could know about what happened. Little did Brennan know, one of her friends recorded her statement and turned it into the school, which urged her to talk to police.
"He (a detective with the Stockton Police Department) explained to me the system with cases that involve rape and kinda laid out the facts about it's a 'he said, she said' and kinda scared me," Brennan said in an interview with Katie Couric "He used an example of a girl who was, like 16 or 17 who was on the stand for, like 16 hours. I can't even imagine”
Brennan decided to not press charges against the three men, but did have a hearing with the judicial board at the school where all three men were found guilty. One was expelled, another suspended for a year, and the last student was suspended for one semester.
trincoll.edu provides tips to prevent rape on campus. For example, keep an out for your friends, drink responsibly, know your drinking limit due to the fact that drinking can decrease comprehension and put you in a vulnerable state.
For the departing seniors of MHS, memorize your college campus layout, always use the buddy system, and be responsible about the fun you have. To learn more helpful tips about campus safety, you can go to the following websites:
