By Paige Quiggins
Crime—it is something that has been happening in increased amounts at the University of Louisville. As a female, I admit it is unsettling to hear about. The investigation has ended on the alleged sexual assault from Sept. 28. It was reported to have occurred during the lunch hour, near Ekstrom Library. A police report stated that the victim was alone during the incident, while other media outlets reported she was trying to help another victim who appeared to have Down syndrome. The storyline changed quite a bit during the course of the week.
A deeper investigation revealed that this woman had filed a series of three police reports since 2007, with both the University of Louisville and Jeffersonville Police Departments. Each of the on-campus reports referred to an alleged assault. By the end of the week, news stations had reported that the University of Louisville Police Department did not have sufficient evidence to corroborate the latest allegations. There were no witnesses, no record on film, and the area where the event allegedly happened was a heavily-condensed traffic area during the time of the incident.
There is no evidence to support it happened, but there is no evidence that it did not happen. The problem becomes a slippery slope when the legitimacy of the allegations is questioned. If these events did happen, we are in some serious trouble. If they did not, I believe we are still going to face trouble as a trickle-down effect.
I am afraid to walk through campus alone, even if I am armed with a cell phone and a container of pepper spray. Now, I am not only frightened by the idea of being attacked or robbed, I also question whether or not my actions will be caught on camera and confirmed. I wonder if my attacker would ever face punishment.
There is a possibility that some things that happen on U of L’s campus are not caught on camera. Is it plausible for criminals to strategically find places where their actions can take place without witnesses? If the allegations are true, we are all left scared to walk around campus, day or night. On the other hand, if the person who filed these police reports was not telling the truth, it hurts all of us. People who become victims of crimes in the future might have to worry about their allegations being questioned, because of the unconfirmed cases that happened in the past. Bottom line, we all need to watch our backs. Predators are everywhere; you have to be smart to be safe.
