Monday, December 15, 2014

Local colleges have protocols on sexual assaults

“We go over sexual assaults, sex offenses, date rape drugs and other things at orientation,” UIS Police Chief Don Mitchell said. “If one is reported, we do the same as if it was the city, county or state police investigating.”

The protocol, published on the UIS Police Department website, tells victims of sexual assault not to shower but to go immediately to a hospital and report the incident to campus police, the UIS Women’s Center or the UIS Counseling Center.

“We do a follow-up investigation and work with city, county and state police, state particularly if the offense is committed off campus by UIS students,” Mitchell said. “We handle the investigation here.”

UIS offers counseling services as well as a rape aggression defense course that’s offered to students, faculty and staff and is taught every semester. The class is sponsored by the UIS Women’s Center and the campus police department.

The story was reported by The State Journal-Register on December 15, 2014.

Read the article online