Sunday evening, the University of Tennessee Police Department received a report detailing a sexual assault that occurred in the Alumni Memorial Building. A female reported that an unknown male entered the building, then “sexually assaulted her by digital penetration,” according to an email alert released by UTPD on Sept. 2.
The victim chose not to pursue legal action against the suspect, but did provide a description of the attacker to UTPD. The suspect, who remains at large, was a white male with shoulder-length, curly brown hair, who stood about 5 feet 6 inches tall and weighed approximately 150 pounds.
The assault occurred on a football game day, but UTPD Chief of Police Troy Lane emphasized that despite heavy crowds, police presence did not waver.
“If [UTPD officers are] not assigned to patrol that day, they’re at the stadium,” Lane said. “This is the type of crime that can happen any day of the week.”
Lane encouraged victims of sexual assault to report the incident, regardless of their desire to press charges. Simply by speaking up, further assaults can be prevented.
“Sexual assault is a very underreported crime,” Lane said. “The more that we get the word out about this and the more that people feel more comfortable coming forward, I think that helps us paint a clear picture of what goes on on any campus, not just ours.”
Sunday’s incident comes in light of another recent sexual assault which took place in a residence hall on Aug. 24. That assault, however, was reported to a campus security authority. Because the assault was not reported to UTPD, all details will remain confidential. However, authorities were still permitted to release an email alert regarding the incident. Although UTPD has sent alerts for sexual assaults in the past, pressure from the federal government prompted a slight change in protocol for the upcoming year.
As a result, students will now receive alerts for every incident reported.
“It’s easier to deal with the criticism for doing it too often than not doing it when it’s needed,” Lane said.
