UPDATED: October 17, 2016 at 8:10p.m.
The College’s annual Security and Fire Safety report showed a decline in the number of reported rapes, drug law violations and liquor law violations. The report, released in late September, gives data on campus crime from the past year.
From 2012 to 2014, the College saw a steady increase in the number of reported rape cases. In 2015, however, the number of reported rapes decreased.
In 2015, 20 rape cases were reported compared to 48 in 2014. Prior to 2014, rape cases were categorized as forcible sex offenses. In 2013, 35 cases of forcible sex offense were reported, compared to 24 in 2012.
Director of Safety and Security Harry Kinne said he does not believe there has been a reduction in sexual assaults on campus but rather noted that it is possible more people are using confidential resources. He said there is a lot more outreach and more avenues of confidentiality than there has been in the past.
Title IX Coordinator and Clery Act Compliance Officer Heather Lindkvist echoed Kinne, saying that while she cannot definitely determine the cause of the decline in reported rapes, the shift in confidential resources may be one facet. Confidential resources are protected by the law and do not have to share statistics in compliance with the Clery Act.
Lindkvist said previously, students who were sexual assault awareness program coordinators provided both direct response and education on sexual assault and contributed towards the Clery crime statistics. Now, she said, they only focus on education and prevention, such as Dartmouth Bystander Initiatives.
The Clery Act requires that all incidents on campus owned or controlled property or public property contiguous to campus, such as a sidewalk or roads, are disclosed to the public. Private resources, such as undergraduate deans, faculty, and coaches are also required report sexual assault, harassment, dating violence to the Title IX Coordinator. The College must release this report each October as a requirement in the Jeanne Clery Act of 1990.
Joshua Davis ’18, a member of the Student and Presidential Committee on Sexual Assault, said that the committee is currently working on an “exit survey” for survivors to provide feedback on why they choose or did not choose to report the assault. Davis said this survey will hopefully give a more accurate description of the reporting climate on campus.
In 2015, arrests for liquor law violations decreased to 45 from 100 in both 2014 and 2013. In addition, there were 313 disciplinary referrals for liquor law violation in 2015, which Kinne said includes Good Samaritan or medical related calls. In 2014 and 2013, there were 336 and 243 reports respectively. Arrests for drug law violations in 2015 also decreased to nine reports from 21 in 2014 and 22 in 2013.
Kinne said there are many reasons the amount of alcohol related arrests decreased. One, he said, could be the hard alcohol ban. Another may be that the Hanover Police department used to respond to Dicks House for intoxicated students but now does not response unless called specifically for medical reasons, he said.
Kinne added that the amount of drug-related arrests and disciplinary referrals vary year to year and do not follow a trend since the amount of people present at an incident or room party is not consistent.
“I do believe that some of our drugs and alcohol statistics are down because people are becoming much more aware,” Kinne said.
Amanda Zhou is a junior at Dartmouth College originally from Brookline, Massachusetts. She’s previously been the associate managing editor, health and wellness beat writer at the Dartmouth and interned at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette this Fall. She is pursuing a major in quantitative social science and a minor in public policy. At college, she edits the campus newspaper, serves on the campus EMS squad and lives in the sustainable living center. After graduation, she is interested in a career in journalism or data analysis. In her spare time, she can be found running, cooking or trying to rock climb.
