Trigger Warning: This page may contain content that is painful or upsetting if you have been sexually assaulted or have experienced sexual abuse. If you experience distress while reading the following content, you can reach a support specialist through the National Sexual Assault Hotline at (800) 656-4673.
Sexual Assaults on College Campuses
Unfortunately, incidents of sexual assault on college and university campuses have increased in recent years, largely among college women. A survey by the Association of American Universities on campus crime statistics showed that rates of nonconsensual sexual contact by physical force or inability to consent increased from 2015 to 2019.
This increase occurred among all demographics, from female undergraduate students, to female graduate students, to undergraduate males. Bisexual, transgender, and queer-identifying student demographics did not see a significant increase in sexual assault over the same time frame.
Because colleges and high schools are places where many explore their sexual freedom and growth, this may deter people from seeking action after a sexual assault incident. Yet if you were harmed by someone while at school, you can take action, and you don’t have to do it alone. But first, it’s important to understand what is considered sexual assault. You may have experienced sexual assault if you:
- Were harassed or coerced into having sexual relations with someone
- Experienced forced penetration of your sexual parts
- Did not give voluntary consent for any sexual act
- Were held by force during a sexual act
- Were exposed to someone’s genitals without consent
- Were unable to give consent for a sexual act due to incapacitation
Any unwelcome touching is an assault, according to the U.S. Department of Justice, while unwelcome touching in a sexual manner is sexual assault. Sadly, this can involve your fellow sorority or fraternity members, a college staff member, faculty member, or university professor, or even a trusted campus friend.
In addition, if someone has been sexually harassing you by making unwelcome, lewd sexual comments, stalking you and making sexual advances, or in other ways, you may have a case.
Take back your dignity and your life. Consider filing a claim against the person who hurt you, or even the university for inadequate security leading to your assault. A trusted campus sexual assault lawyer can explain what you need to do to get started on your case.
What to Do Following An Assault Incident
If you experienced sexual assault on campus, there are a number of steps you can take to ensure the person who attacked you is brought to justice. Follow these steps after a sexual assault incident:
1. Report the incident to campus police or other officials.
2. Contact law enforcement to file a report.
3. Contact RAINN or another sexual assault prevention network for help and support.
4. Seek help through counseling to address trauma and other emotional and mental effects.
5. Consider working with a rape and sexual assault lawyer to seek compensation for your mental and emotional injuries.
Research shows many college students believe their colleges mishandle or ignore reports of sexual assault and domestic violence, which may be why so many sexual assaults were left unreported in past years.
However, most colleges now have resources in place to immediately aid victims of sexual assault, as well as to prevent these incidents from happening. Increased campus security measures, tightened restrictions on allowances for sexual abuse incidents, and other measures have been taken by college campuses to safeguard against sexual misconduct on-campus.
The Clery Act is a federal statute codified at 20 U.S.C. § 1092 that requires college and university campuses to:
- Support sexual assault survivors
- Report campus crime data
- Publicly outline their policies and procedures for protecting students and staff
Where Do Sexual Assaults Happen On-Campus?
Although a sexual assault may take place anywhere, there are some places where they commonly occur. Campus security has an important role to play in protecting college students from unwelcome sexual activities, from offering increased protections to responding to reports of sexual assaults on campus and intimate partner violence in a timely manner, and more.
Female students are the most common victims of rape and other forms of violence against women on campus. Yet you should be able to trust that you have a safe campus climate and that you are free to engage in all campus activities without fear of assault. To help prevent an assault, knowledge of places where they occur can help. Here are some circumstances where campus sexual assaults may take place:
- During a frat or sorority party: Alcohol lowers inhibitions as well as reaction times and critical thinking abilities — you may not be able to sense an unsafe situation while drinking as well as while sober.
- During fraternity and sorority hazing activities: Greek life can involve many ethically questionable activities, but sexually assaulting someone is always illegal.
- In a college or university faculty member’s office: You should be able to count on your professors or instructors for ethical conduct, but if they make sexual advances, you can take action.
- At a campus event: In this case, the college or university may be held liable if you were sexually assaulted due to inadequate security or campus police staffing issues.
- During a school-related outing: Some sexual assaults may happen during school trips abroad.
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Legal Options for Sex Assault on College Campuses
If you endured sexual abuse or sexual harassment on a college campus, you have several options for taking action to ensure your attacker is brought to justice. First, you can report the incident to campus officials.
How the incident will be handled depends on your university and their policy on campus sexual violence. You may have to appear before the school board and make a statement under a process known as campus adjudication (judgment dispute).
Higher education institutions are required by the U.S. Department of Education, among other things, to ensure all students have equal access to education, regardless of their gender identity or sexual orientation. This provision is part of your civil rights under Title IX. This also means responding to reports of sexual misconduct. If your school does not handle your report or mismanages it, they may be held liable for the assault.
Reporting to your school is not a replacement for filing a report with the criminal justice system, however. This can only be done by law enforcement, and will only be pursued if you file a police report detailing the sexual assault.
Filing the report may be taxing, especially after what you have already been through, but it’s an important part of filing criminal charges against your attacker. It may also prove crucial if you pursue them in a civil suit.
If you decide to take action against the perpetrator, or find reason to take action against the school, you can file a personal injury lawsuit to seek compensation for damages. A lawyer can help you understand your legal options and will build a strong foundation for your case.
Who Will Be Held Liable?
Determining liability in a personal injury case can be complex. In many cases, the person who perpetrated the attack is the person you will bring a lawsuit against. However, some cases involve the institution where the attack occurred — the college or university.
As you might imagine, the university or college may only be held liable if they were in some way responsible for your attack. This means proving that negligence was involved. Negligence is a legal definition that means that someone failed to act in a way that a reasonable person in the same situation would have acted, or acted with careless regard toward others.
For example, if you were walking back to your dorm room after a campus event and were sexually assaulted, but the lighting was inadequate during your route, this could make the campus liable for your sexual injury.
Similarly, if you report sexual assault to authorities, they fail to take action, and another person is assaulted as a result, the college could be held liable for both your and the other victim’s attack.
Providers of education programs have a duty to their program participants, and when they neglect this duty, they can be held responsible. A campus sexual assault attorney can explain more during a free consultation to discuss your case.
How Long Do I Have to File A Sexual Assault Claim?
How long you have to report sexual assault on-campus will depend on your college’s sexual assault reporting policy. However, you may have years to report sexual assault to law enforcement — this law varies by state. New York will have a different statute of limitations that Washington, DC. In Florida, you generally have four years to file a personal injury claim, including those filed for sexual assault.
Though this is a different statute from the one for filing criminal charges, the statute for reporting statutory rape or other forms of sexual assault is also generally four years. This number is tricky, because it also varies depending on the nature of the incident — you may have up to ten years to file a report of criminal sexual activity.
Why are statutes of limitations so lengthy? Many survivors are deterred from reporting due to shame, guilt, or fear of consequences. Further, even once you report charges, law enforcement will need time to investigate.
When filing a personal injury claim, the defendant may try to tie up your claim, keeping it from being filed and running out the clock on the statute of limitations. An experienced sexual abuse attorney will recognize this tactic and do everything within their power to ensure your claim is complete and filed on time.
College Campus Sexual Assault Lawsuits Examples
More light is being shed on the prevalence of sexual and dating violence on campuses across the U.S., particularly through civil lawsuits filed by sexual assault victims. Here are some recent lawsuits involving sexual assaults that occurred at higher education institutions:
- University of Michigan reached a $490 million settlement agreement in January 2022, resolving a sexual abuse case involving a late university doctor and more than 1000 survivors.
- University of South Carolina reached a $1.1 billion dollar agreement in 2021 for sexual abuse victims who were patients of a former university gynecologist.
- Ohio State University agreed to pay out $46.7 million dollars to survivors of sexual assault in 2020 by a campus medical doctor.
- Michigan State University reached a $500 million dollar agreement in 2018 for sexual abuse survivors assaulted by former university doctor Larry Nassar.
- University of Tennessee reached a $2.48 million dollar settlement in 2016 with six female students who sued the school for creating an environment that enabled sexual assault by student athletes.
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Connect With a Top-Rated Campus Sexual Assault Attorney
Sexual attacks that occur on campus can leave you feeling powerless, but filing a personal injury lawsuit against the attacker can help you regain that balance of power in your life. Don’t let criminal sexual activity go unreported. You can report the assault to bring the perpetrator to justice, as well as to protect future victims from harm — sexual assault prevention begins with awareness.
A sexual assault attorney can help. The law offices of Florin | Roebig have managed multiple sexual assault cases, and we can help you file your claim and advise you on where to report incidents of sexual assault.
When you’re ready to file, we’ll handle the process for you, so you can focus on recovering from the pain you’ve endured. Call our toll-free hotline now to learn the first steps you need to take and to be connected with a sexual assault attorney.
