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Sexual Assault

At the College of Saint Benedict and Saint John’s University, we take the safety and security of students very seriously.  Over the years, the institutions have continuously evaluated security operations, and have made a number of suggestions to improve and strengthen the security of students participating in our study abroad programs. It is our goal that students have a harmonious environment in which to pursue their study abroad education.  If there are disturbances and disruptions brought about by crime, everyone in the community suffers and the educational environment can be seriously altered.

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What is a sexual crime?

No one wants to think about sexual crime.  And while it can make you feel angry, sad or frightened, you cannot ignore the subject.  One cannot assume with certainty that sexual assault, rape or harassment will not take place, even on a study abroad experience.

At the College of Saint Benedict and Saint John’s University, we believe that every student needs to know what constitutes sexual crime, what precautions should be taken, and in the event of an assault, what victims should do. Read on for definitions of sexual assault terms:

Sexual assault is defined by the College of Saint Benedict and Saint John’s University as sexual contact or penetration without consent. Sexual contact includes, but is not limited to, the intentional touching by the respondent of the complainant's breasts, inner thighs, genitals and/or groin area, whether clothed or unclothed; or the coerced touching by the complainant of another's intimate parts. Sexual contact also includes the intentional removal or attempted removal of clothing covering the complainant's intimate parts or undergarments. Consent means words or overt actions by a person indicating a freely given present agreement to perform a particular sexual act with the actor. Consent does not mean the existence of a prior or current social relationship between the actor and the complainant, or that the complainant failed to resist a particular sexual act. The use or threatened use of force or other forms of coercion take away a person's ability to give consent to sexual contact. A person who is unconscious or substantially impaired cannot consent to a sexual act. Use of drugs or alcohol by the accused, however, is not a defense against allegations of sexual assault and does not diminish personal accountability or criminal liability.

To obtain a copy of the entire joint sexual assault and human rights policies and procedures, please visit our website at www.csbsju.edu/studenthr or contact the Office of Student Human Rights and Diversity at 320-363-5485. 

Sexual abuse takes place when a man or woman is forced to engage in any form of sexual contact other than vaginal intercourse, under the circumstances mentioned above. If penetration is involved (other than vaginal), it is considered sodomy, also a felony in minnesota.

Sexual harassment is conduct or communication of a sexual nature, whether physical, oral, or written, which is perceived as threatening, intimidating or humiliating to a person or group of people.

Dating violence and battering is a pattern of abusive behaviors used by one individual to control or exert power over another individual in the context of an intimate relation-ship. Battering includes emotional/psychological, physical, economic, and/or sexual abuse and affects all types of people, regardless of income, education, race or religion.

Stalking is behavior in which an individual willfully, maliciously, and repeatedly engages in a knowing course of conduct directed at a specific person which reasonably and seriously alarms, torments, or terrorizes the person, and which serves no legitimate purpose.

Prevention

Your safety and well being depend mostly on you:

  • Be alert.  Just being aware of the possibility of sexual misconduct is the first step to preventing it.  Trust your instincts and react to any signs that make you uneasy.
  • Reduce your risk.  If you have any doubts as to what you should or shouldn’t be doing, just put yourself in the place of the potential criminal.  From that viewpoint, does your appearance, attitude or presence increase your chances of being a potential victim?
  • Think ahead.  Too often it is easy to go about our routine activities and new study abroad experiences without really considering possible risky situations that might occur and how they should be handled.  Get into the habit of asking yourself if you are going about your business safely.  If not, what can you change?  If a confrontation should occur, are you prepared to handle it?
  • Remember, you can err on either of two extremes:  by neglecting prevention and by overusing caution.  Those who don’t take any preventative measures are certainly vulnerable.  Yet, those who drastically alter their lifestyle for the sake of security become victims of paranoia and fear.

General crime prevention tips:

  • To the extent possible, and depending on your living situation, keep doors and windows secured whether you’re there or not.  A high percentage of rapes occur in the victim’s residence.
  • If you are alone in your residence, don’t reveal this fact to anyone unfamiliar that telephones or knocks at the door.
  • Always ask for identification before letting an unfamiliar person gain entrance.  Once you make it a habit to do this, it won’t seem awkward or uncomfortable.
  • Use paths that are well populated when you walk or bike.
  • Don’t hitchhike, ever!
  • Trust your instincts and try to identify the reason for feeling uneasy about a person or a situation.
  • Don’t wear earphones while jogging or biking because they reduce your ability to hear—and also your awareness.
  • Have your car keys ready in hand when going to your car.
  • Don’t tag keys with easy-to-decipher labels or locations.
  • Your car doors should be locked and windows rolled up when parked and when driving through stop-and-go traffic.

Date or acquaintance assault

Date or acquaintance assault can happen in all types of environments.  With its high number of social and experiential activities, the study abroad setting may offer opportunities for stranger or acquaintance sexual assaults to occur.

Don’t let your guard down because a date happens to be a host family, classmate, or even a new “friend.”  Especially in a different cultural setting, the offender may misread or imagine that a desired “silent message” or attitude is being communicated by the victim. The following is a list of erroneous beliefs regarding sexual assault:

  • Even though a woman says “no,” she really means “yes.”
  • If she teases, she should expect to “go all the way.”  A tease deserves all she gets.
  • When a woman is expensively dined or entertained, she’s obligated.
  • Men simply can’t control themselves past a certain point.

What you can do

  1. Convey strongly that you expect your rights to be respected.
  2. Meet new acquaintances in public places.
  3. Try to arrange to have your own transportation or travel with good friends.
  4. Keep money in your pocket or purse for using a phone or to pay for transportation if you must leave a situation abruptly.
  5. Be aware of how much alcohol is being consumed.  It’s best to avoid using alcohol and drugs entirely. 
  6. While not a direct cause of date rape, drugs and alcohol can increase your vulnerability by lowering your alertness and ability to react.
  7. Make your sexual limits clear.  If someone starts to offend you, be direct.  Passivity may be interpreted as permission.  Say no when you mean no. Be assertive.
  8. If you feel that you are being pressured into unwanted sex, say something immediately, before it goes any further.
  9. It’s okay to criticize your date’s action and still like them.  However, if you don’t say anything, they won’t understand what behavior to stop.  You might say, “i really like you, but i’m not ready for sex.”  Or, “i don’t like it when you do that.”
  10. If your date does not listen to you, leave.
  11. Embarrassment should not keep you from doing what is right for you.  Don’t hesitate to raise you voice, stand up abruptly, or scream, if the situation warrants it.
  12. Accept the person’s decision.  “no” means “no.”  Don’t read other meanings into it.
  13. Don’t assume that you can coerce the person because: you paid for the evening…they  agreed to hook up and changed their mind…you picked her/him up at a party…you’ve had sex with her/him before…you think they enjoy being coerced or “persuaded” into sex…she dressed in a “sexy” manner and flirted with you…
  14. Being turned down when you ask for sex is not personal rejection.  Those who say “no” to sex are not rejecting the person; they are expressing their desire not to participate in an act.  Your desires may be beyond your control but your actions are within your control.
  15. Keep sexual assault/domestic violence hotline number accessible: 1-800-333-SAFE                    

If you or someone you know is sexuallly assaulted

  • Get to a safe place.
  • Call a trusted friend or your study abroad advisor.
  • Report the incident, if you haven’t already done so, to the local law enforcement, police or authorities. You always have the choice of pressing criminal charges or getting a “no-contact” order.
  • Seek emotional support from a counselor at st. Ben’s or st. John’s, your study abroad advisor, or a trusted friend or family member. Telling someone can help you heal from the trauma of being assaulted.
  • Seek medical attention if warranted.
  • If you know someone who has been sexually assaulted, believe him or her and reassure them that the rape was not their fault. Be a good listener and don’t question anything the victim did to survive the assault.

Reporting an incident

Acquaintance sexual assault is the most common type of sexual violence on college campuses. However, even when a survivor doesn’t know the assailant, s/he may have mixed feelings concerning both the incident and what to do about it. Speak to your study abroad advisor for guidance and support.

Students may choose to adjudicate the sexual misconduct through the office of student human rights and diversity at the College of Saint Benedict and Saint John’s University.

Ideally, a report is made immediately after the assault occurs, in order to allow for evidence collection and/or investigation. In most countries, the police will take a statement from you. After reporting to the police, the survivor can decide whether to press charges or not.

You may also choose to check into whether or not to file a civil suit against the alleged perpetrator for damages for wrong done. Your first step is to hire your own attorney. Some attorneys offer a one-time, initial, free consultation and will take this kind of case on a “contingency fee” basis. The decision to begin a civil suit, or stop one in process, is entirely the survivor’s.

If you report to campus authorities, you will be referred to security (csb) or life safety services (sju). Security/life safety will begin a long-distance investigation, and will contact the student human rights office.  Please refer to the study abroad manual for more detailed information on the procedure to be followed if a sexual misconduct complaint is made. For copies of the entire sexual assault and human rights policies and procedures, please visit the web at www.csbsju.edu/studenthr or contact the human rights office at 320-363-5485.

How to handle sexual assault allegations

Between CSB/SJU students abroad

When a csb/sju student is accused of sexual assault involving another CSB/SJU student during study abroad, the following procedures for handling the sexual assault complaint should be followed.  This is important not only from the stand point of supporting the alleged victim and assuring that the rights of all parties to the dispute are protected, but also to protect the institution from liability. (Some of the resources listed here may also be used to aid victims of sexual assault when the perpetrator is not a csb/sju student.)

As with any allegation of sexual assault, time is of the essence for all parties involved and affected. Program directors should work with csb security and sju life safety services to carry out an investigation of the incident immediately according to the official csb/sju complaint procedure (below).

Confidential details and reports should be faxed or couriered rather than e-mailed.

A student cannot be cut from a study abroad program solely due to an allegation of sexual assault and before a hearing process has found the respondent in violation of the sexual assault policy. Sending the student home prior to a hearing to determine the student’s responsibility may communicate an assumption of responsibility.  If the student is found not responsible, then sending the student home would be premature and may make the institution(s) liable for the negative impact this has on the student’s reputation, academic career, etc.  However, if an alcohol violation occurs in conjunction with a sexual assault, the alcohol violation and/or other disruptive behavior may constitute grounds for expulsion from the program (see study abroad handbook). 

When an alleged sexual assault occurs on-campus, a “no contact” order may be issued to the students involved. The “no-contact” order restricts the access that each person has to the other’s residence and other places they may come into contact. This order would be enforced until the issue is resolved. It may be more difficult to enforce a “no contact” order between the parties on a study abroad, depending upon how much of their space is shared (living, classroom, social, etc.). If separation is warranted or desired by either party or the institution, we will make every reasonable effort to enforce the “no-contact” order.

Ccounseling services at CSB/SJU can be helpful to program directors in addressing the concerns and anxieties of all those involved and inform them of the process that must be followed (see end of article for contact information).

CSB/SJU joint complaint procedure for sexual assault violations involving students

The following constitutes the steps which make up the complaint process. All complaints will be heard and determined as described below. If at any time during the process a party does not reply or otherwise will not participate, the human rights officer may move the process to the next step, dismiss the complaint, or take whatever other steps may be necessary to ensure the integrity of the process.

Ordinarily, complaints under this procedure will be brought by people who feel that their rights have been violated. Nevertheless, extraordinary circumstances may arise in which a complaint may be initiated in the name of the institution(s) in order to protect the safety, integrity and welfare of the community as a whole.

Silence in response to an allegation on the part of the respondent will not be viewed as an admission of the allegation, but may leave the complainant's allegations undisputed.

All parties involved in a complaint procedure are entitled to be treated with dignity and to receive nonjudgmental support from their institution while engaged in this process. Spiritual direction and personal counseling services are available to all parties upon request.

This procedure reflects the desire of the institutions to respond to complaints in a manner that promotes fairness to all parties and will be followed as faithfully as possible. The institutions recognize, however, that each case is unique in its presentation and requires that the institutions reserve some flexibility in responding to the particular circumstances of each case.

The resolution of these cases will be accomplished as expeditiously as possible. To that end, this procedure recites time frames for administrative action. Every attempt will be made to satisfy the requirements of these time frames. Where the procedure indicates that an action will be completed within a specified period of days, "day" means regular business/school days. Adjustments to the time frames will be made when school breaks, holidays, or other exigent circumstances require.

Complainants are encouraged to begin the complaint process as soon as possible following an alleged assault. If a complaint is brought forward more than one (1) calendar year after an alleged incident, the institution, in its discretion, may decline to process a complaint under this procedure.

The steps of the complaint process are as follows:

  1. Initiation of complaint
    • This complaint process may be initiated by any member of the community by filing a complaint form with the college of saint benedict security director, the saint john’s university director of life safety services or the human rights officer.  The complaint form must state sufficient facts, including the specific name(s), date(s), location(s) and description of the alleged act(s) of misconduct in sufficient detail to enable the institutional  officers to make a determination as to whether further fact-finding is necessary and if sufficient evidence exists to proceed with the complaint process.  The human rights officer is sherry smolik day (e-mail:  ssmolikday@csbsju.edu).
  2. Investigation
    • Following the submission of the complaint form, a preliminary investigation will be conducted by campus authorities (see joint sexual assault policy for definition of campus authorities at www.csbsju.edu/studenthr). Campus authorities may interview the complainant, respondent and/or other witnesses or request additional information from the complainant, respondent or others. The respondent may provide a written response to the complaint. A written summary of the preliminary investigation and all witness statements or relevant documents will be provided to the human rights officer. Every attempt will be made to complete the investigation process within ten (10) days of the filing of the complaint.
  3. Determination of options for resolution.
    • Upon receipt  of the investigation report, the human rights officer will meet with  appropriate administrative officers of the institutions of the parties involved in the complaint, to review the facts of the complaint, and to make an initial assessment regarding the options available for resolution of the complaint. Based on this review, the case will be referred for resolution in one of the following ways:
        1. Referral.
          • If it is determined that there is not a sufficient basis to believe that a violation of the joint sexual assault policy has occurred, the parties will be notified of that determination and the complainant will be informed of other more appropriate procedures for resolving the complaint.
        2. Recommendation for resolution.
          • If it is determined that there is a sufficient basis to believe that a violation may have occurred, and that, if proven, the allegations presented would not typically  result in the suspension or expulsion of the respondent, the parties to the case may be offered an administrative recommendation for resolution of the complaint.
          • The recommended resolution may include a variety of institutional responses or requirements, such as the following: reprimand, behavioral contracts, administrative referrals, community service hours, restitution, required attendance at educational programs, required assessment or counseling, mediation at the victim's request, restriction of privileges, parental notification, removal of student from study abroad program participation, and/or probation.
          • If all parties to the complaint agree in writing to the terms and conditions of the recommended resolution, the case will be resolved without further process under this procedure.
        3. Hearing.
          • If the parties to the complaint do not agree to have the case resolved based upon the administrative recommendation, or if there is a sufficient basis to believe that, if proven, the allegations presented would likely result in the suspension or expulsion of the respondent, the case shall be referred to an ad hoc committee for a hearing as described in  step 4 of the joint complaint procedure for sexual assault involving students. (This can be found at www.csbsju.edu/studenthr).
          • Every attempt will be made to complete step 3 within five (5) days of the completion of the preliminary investigation.

Resources




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