What to Do If You Are Sexually Assaulted on Campus
Sadly, sexual assault incidents on college campuses are more common than people might think. In fact, one in two transgender students, one in female students, and one in 16 male students will be sexually assaulted or experience an attempted sexual assault while in college. Unfortunately, only 20% of students who experienced sexual assault reported the incident due to fear of retaliation or victim-blaming.
What’s more worrying is that sexual assault victims usually know the person who abused them, and the vast majority of these incidents involve alcohol. If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted on campus, here’s what you should do
Steps to Take After a Sexual Assault on Campus
After going through a traumatic sexual assault incident, you should heal and get help at your own pace to recover from the ordeal. You can take control of the situation after surviving a sexual assault and move forward by:
- Finding a safe space and someone with whom you feel comfortable sharing the experience. It is immensely important that you don’t blame yourself in any way or think about things that you could’ve done differently to prevent the sexual assault.
- Seeking help when you’re ready, whether from your family or friends, medical help, legal help, or counseling. Consider reporting the incident to the police and your Title IX coordinator in your school. When you call the police right after the assault, they will create a police report and have a rape kit done to corroborate your allegations and help make sure that your abuser will be held accountable for what they did to you.
- Whether you seek help right away or need time to process what happened before reporting it, counseling can help you manage the psychological trauma brought on by the assault
Universities and Campuses Can Be Held Liable for College Sexual Assaults
Schools may be held responsible for college sexual assault incidents under Title IX law. This federal law makes it illegal for schools that receive federal funding to discriminate against students based on their sex in all activities and education programs. Sex discrimination includes any form of sexual violence and harassment. The law also provides that schools must respond right away and follow specific rules when addressing reports of sexual assault.
If the school should’ve known or was aware of sexual assault happening on campus, it must also take swift action to stop it, prevent more incidents in the future, and effectively address its consequences. The Clery Act is another federal law that addresses sexual assaults in schools. It requires schools to disclose security policies and crime statistics.
Reach Out to an Experienced Tennessee Sexual Assault Attorney Now
The experienced Tennessee sexual assault attorneys at Raybin & Weissman can assist sexual assault survivors in seeking damages from the perpetrator and deal with the obstacles they will encounter when navigating their case. Leave all the legal aspects of your case to us and just focus on healing and rebuilding your life. Please call our office at 615-256-6666 or send us a message online to set up a free consultation with our Tennessee sexual assault attorney.