Campus Safety and the La Verne Police Department were investigating an alleged sexual assault that occurred Aug. 30 – until the alleged victim retracted her statement the same day.
An email was sent to the La Verne community at 3:43 p.m., August 31, to alert the campus about the incident, which reportedly occurred between 9:45 p.m. to 10 p.m. near Brandt Hall.
However, at 5:49 p.m., Campus Safety sent an updated email, that the alleged victim had retracted her statement. The message also urged community members to report any suspicious activity. Campus Safety encourages students to walk in groups and stay on well-lit pathways. They also encourage students to download the LiveSafe app for quicker response.
According to statistics about campus sexual violence reported by Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network, or RAINN, 11 percent of college students experience rape or sexual assault through force or violence. Among these undergraduate students, 23 percent are women and 5 percent are men.
RAINN also reported that more than 50 percent of college sexual assaults occur in August, September, October or November, with an increased risk during the first few months of a semester. Yet only 20 percent of female victims of sexual assault report the incident to law enforcement, according to RAINN. False reporting of sexual assault is rare: Only between 2 percent and 8 percent of reported sexual assaults are falsely reported, according to the FBI.
In an emergency, call Campus Safety at 909-448-4950 or the La Verne Police Department at 909-596-1913.
—Emily Lau
