I-Team: Inside the campus sex assault 'red zone'
CHICAGO (WLS) -- The ABC7 I-Team exposes the "red zone," a time on the calendar when police say college students are most vulnerable to sexual assaults on campus. For thousands of Chicago area students, the "red zone" is right now.
Researchers say one in five women is raped while in college, more likely in her first year. The "red zone" is the period of time between when a freshman starts school and Thanksgiving break. Tonight, technology and training is helping students avoid becoming another statistic.
"As a freshman, you are kind of nave. It's always like trying something new and being able to fit in. It's a lot of pressure," said Sarah Musni, senior.
More than 50% of college sexual assaults happen in August, September, October or November, according to a campus sexual assault study.
"It's called the Red Zone. It's from the time freshman get to school, their first day, up until about Thanksgiving break, that is where they are most vulnerable to become victims," said Jack Shilney, Chicago's Finest Tactics.
Veteran Chicago police officers Jack Shilney and Josh Weitzman spend their off-duty time educating college bound students about how to handle dangerous situations on campus, including sexual assault.
"There are serial rapists who know one knows who lurk in the shadows, they are rare. They are rare in the city and they're probably rarer at schools. Rape is by someone you know," said Weitzman.
Shilney and Weitzman share these tips with students: take control of your personal safety, set boundaries and recognize when they are being crossed, do not go to a party by yourself, and if you are sexually assaulted, call police.
"I tell anyone in the class, you call the police first, you don't call the school, you don't even call the school police. You're a victim, you call the police," said Weitzman.
The I-Team began investigating the under-reporting of sexual assaults on campus earlier this year.
This summer, Missouri senator -- and former sex crimes prosecutor -- Claire McCaskill looked into how schools deal with campus rape reports. Her national survey of 440 colleges and universities showed that more than 40% of those schools have conducted no investigations of alleged sexual assaults in the past 5 years. The survey also found that a third of the schools failed to properly train officials who deal with sexual assault claims.
Local college students told the I-Team that sexual assaults on campus are top of mind.
"They did educate us on the subject at least," said Andrew Stremic, college sophomore.
"It's something I'm aware of and something I'm not surprised by because I have been and know a lot of people who have been victims of sexual assault," said Kara Hoy, college sophomore.
Twenty-five years' worth of research at John's Hopkins went into developing the My Plan app to help women recognize when they are in a dangerous relationship. It involves a series of questions to assess the level of danger and offers resources to get immediate help.
"One of the things we've found in my research is that one of the danger signs of a dangerous abusive partner is when you are physically forced into sex," said Prof. Jacquelyn Campbell, John's Hopkins School of Nursing.
Yeardley Love was beaten to death by her ex-boyfriend three weeks before graduating University of Virginia. This app was funded by the One Love Foundation, started in Yeardley's memory by her mother.
"My goal is to try to prevent this from ever happening to any other family," said Sharon Love, victim's mother.
New legislation was introduced this summer that would hold colleges more accountable for preventing and dealing with sexual assaults on campus. The law would also require universities to conduct an anonymous survey every year asking students about their views on campus sexual assault. Those results would be published online.
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