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Student reports sexual assault on Spring St.
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by Courtney Johnson
Monday, March 5, 2007
A 21-year-old University of Wisconsin student was sexually assaulted early Saturday morning on the 1000 block of Spring Street, according to a report filed with the Madison Police Department.
MPD officers are currently looking for two suspects who allegedly approached the woman as she was walking around 1:40 a.m. The suspects are described as two white men in their mid-20s who are both about 5'11" tall.
"This is absolutely disappointing that yet another horrific attack has occurred in the campus area," said Ald. Mike Verveer, District 4. "I'm really at the end of my rope in terms of being at wit's end — I really cannot stress enough how unusual it is to have so many seemingly violent attacks occurring in the same year."
Sgt. Jennifer Krueger Favour of the MPD said the area of Spring Street has not had an unusually high number of violent crimes.
"That whole area is heavily student-populated, so there's issues that happen all the time that are related to student-population issues," Krueger Favour said. "I don't know if I could say that this area is any more of a concern than other areas of campus."
According to Verveer, many non-students who are currently under supervision by the state's Department of Corrections live in the area where the assault occurred, and this will likely give city detectives a place to start looking for suspects.
"If there's any silver lining in all of this, according to a Madison Police official I spoke to today, the victim was not physically injured," Verveer said. "It goes without saying she's very emotionally scarred by this traumatic incident, but at least she's not hospitalized."
Verveer said this attack is similar in some ways to attacks that occurred last semester, where strangers attacked young women walking alone at night.
City Council President Austin King, whose district includes the area of Spring Street, said this incident reinforces the need for the city to invest more in downtown safety.
"I would love to see a neighborhood officer on Spring Street, just like we have on Langdon Street," King said. "But even if we tripled the amount of foot patrol, it's not necessarily going to be able to stop two predators from doing something that's awful."
The Downtown Safety Initiative, which was created in part by the MPD and Mayor Dave Cieslewicz, calls for an increase in the number of police officers on foot patrol at night. However, the increase isn't expected to happen until this spring.
"[This assault] makes one think that perhaps we can't be waiting to use those extra cops now," Verveer said.
Krueger Favour said there is no indication as of yet that this assault is related to other assaults that have occurred in the campus area. No arrests have been made as of press time.
Anonymous (March 5, 2007 @ 9:48am):
Aw, some attention-seeking female was out walking around at 1:40 in the morning, two men approach her and attack her and now we're all supposed to be sympathetic.
Verveer said "t goes without saying she's very emotionally scarred by this traumatic incident." Yeah, you can say that after we find out it was probably a hoax. You wanna see emotional scarring? Try doing time for a sexual assault you never committed. Ask some guy who's done ten years in the pen, only to find that, thanks to DNA testing, he was innocent all along! We fell for that fake kidnapping a couple years ago, didn't we? Not again, my friend. Judgment is reserved until all the facts in the case are in!
Anonymous (March 5, 2007 @ 10:21am):
She was attacked by 2 men but she was not physically injured. Hmmm, I'm a little skeptical about this woman's claim. I say let's allow the police to investigate this further.
Anonymous (March 5, 2007 @ 10:40am):
How about some of these "cops" walk around at night without their uniforms, and try to catch the bad guy! Dress like college students, Or maybe they can pretend to be homeless people (there is certainly alot of them on Langdon St.). Don't need a degree in criminalogy to use a ruse.
Anonymous (March 5, 2007 @ 11:49am):
Hey, 9:48 makes a very good point. Not only can you end up in the pen for a crime you did not do, but you can also be forced to plea bargain and be on probabation for years for a crime you did not do. Try getting a job after you paid the UW for a degree because you took a plea, it doesn't happen. Something really stinks in Dane County, and Noble Wray thinks it is o.k. for the cops to lie! If everyone told the truth, we would live in a much better world.
Anonymous (March 5, 2007 @ 12:11pm):
Spring St. is up by Camp Randall Stadium. Aha, they were football players! Gettin' a little edgy in the off-season, eh?
Anonymous (March 5, 2007 @ 12:25pm):
Thanks, Progressive Dane!
Anonymous (March 5, 2007 @ 12:25pm):
weren't they wearing puffy jackets???
Anonymous (March 5, 2007 @ 1:07pm):
Its sad and pathetic that when a women is forced to be sexually used for another gratification we blame her.
I sympathize for people falsely accused, but I go by criminology statistics rather than sexist stereotypes. Sexual assault are no more false reported than any other violent crime. More guilty people go free in our system than innocent people convicted
I don't think we should allow people to sexual harm others nor should anyone be blamed for two men who get there kicks harming a student, regardless of their gender and the manner the chose to harm in
Anonymous (March 5, 2007 @ 1:09pm):
the 1000 block of Spring St. is no where near Camp Randall.
Anonymous (March 5, 2007 @ 1:14pm):
i am absolutely sickened by the comments made on this board. Only 10% of rapes are reported to the police. Of these, even fewer make it to a court room. Rape is the most under reported crime in the US. And false reporting for rape is no more common than it is for any other crime.
So how about instead of calling the victim out, we start talking about the two men who thought it was okay to attack her?
One of you brave people who posted anonymously said that she was "attention seeking". Why? Because she didn't stay silent after being raped? Yeah, being questioned about every decision you've ever made, slandered by strangers and having your history dissected is a lot of fun. What a great way of getting attention.
Another anonymous reporter said that "if everyone told the truth, we would live in a much better world." How about if we supported the people who are telling the stories of their brutal attacks?
I tried to log in to post this, but it wont let me. My name is Jenny, and I think these comments are sickening.
Anonymous (March 5, 2007 @ 1:17pm):
First off - the 1000 block of Spring Street is by Park St.- NOT by Camp Randall. Secondly, comments about this being a hoax or about this being an "attention-seeking female" sicken me. I can only assume these comments were made by ignorant males who have no idea how vulnerable a woman is walking alone at night. It's a miracle that she wasn't physically injured, but not being physically injured has nothing to do with not being sexually assaulted. Instead of waiting to condemn her attackers until the case it solved - How about we hold off on condemning the VICTIM?
Anonymous (March 5, 2007 @ 1:25pm):
In response to 9:48 and other seemingly negative comments. It appears that the people who are afraid of doing time for a crime they did not commit should may be think..."What can we do to stop the crimes from happening?" There is a bigger picture here than the public stranger sexual assaults that every newspaper wants to report because its makes for exciting news. More than 25% of women will be raped in their lifetime, another 19% of women will fend off an attempted rape and 1:6 men will be raped in their lifetime. It seems to me that there are an awful lot of people wanting to "seek attention"according to the other comments.
As far as Mike Verveer being in awe of all the incidents...its bullshit. I am sorry officer Verveer are suffering from amnesia. Sexual assault is one of the most under reported crimes, Is that why this is shocking to you? If you don't want to add more police patrols you are effectively only going to cut back on about 30% of the sexual assaults that occur because that is how many are perpetrated by strangers. What about the other 70% acquaintance rapes that occur? What does the MPD have in place to curve those statistics?
Its disappointing to see that the students on this campus are not more concerned for their fellow students safety and well being, but instead making sure that there ass does not get blamed for a very serious crime. I thought this campus was progressive, but based on the comments of this article I can see that I have been disappointed by others short sightings.
As for the victim/survivor. I believe that was happened was extremely traumatic and I am sorry that it has happened again. I believe you, and I Know this is anonymous, but there are more people on this campus who will believe you.
Anonymous (March 5, 2007 @ 1:41pm):
Only 2% of sexual assaults are falsely reported, that is the same as any other crime for false reporting. So for the individual who is concerned about being committed for a crime he or she did not commit then maybe we as a community should find a way to end the crime itself. By blaming the victim/survivor hardly seems like an effective way to end the significant amount of sexual assaults that occur each year. Did you know that 1:4 women will be raped her lifetime, and another 19% will fend off attempted rape. Also 1:6 men will be raped in his lifetime. These statistics are too frightening to simply be "attention seeking" women or men. This is also why I find it hard to believe that Mike Verveer finds these incidents "shocking". That is bullshit.
As for the individual making assumptions about the "attention seeking female", and wanting to have "all the facts before making a judgment" why don't you save that judgment for the alleged perpetrator, not the victim/survivor.
To the victim/survivor: I am sorry that this has happened to some one else, and I admire your bravery to step forward. I hope you are finding the support that you need, and stay strong.
Anonymous (March 5, 2007 @ 2:00pm):
Verveer is not a police officer, he is an assistant district attorney in Dane County, as well as an Alderman. If he says "it is unusual to have so many attacks in one year", he is full of poop. He knows exactly how many there are, how many get reported, how many get prosecuted, plea bargained, etc. etc. etc.
Anonymous (March 5, 2007 @ 3:05pm):
maybe if the SAFEride phone lines weren't so clogged with groups or four people just trying to get a free cab out of the cold people who really are walking alone wouldn't be discouraged from calling (becasue it is so hard to get through). If you have friends to walk in a group with SAFEride is not a program for you to use!
Anonymous (March 5, 2007 @ 5:06pm):
Everyone it's ok ASM started a safety initiative last semester we should be safe! Graciously, they have decided to extend it to this semester to help us. Does anyone else love how people can be so offended by anonymous comments? So here's a comment to all comments to far...Let people say different theories about the attack, heck no one really knows except for those involved. Sift and Winnow Baby!!!
- Germain E. Stemme
Anonymous (March 5, 2007 @ 5:39pm):
If you're going to throw around numbers, at least use relevant ones.
In AMERICA one in six women are sexually assaulted. One in 33 males are.
You say we should feel sorry for the victim, who somehow was "raped" and yet not physically injured, who was walking alone at 1:40 AM, and who may or may not have been drunk. More guys have been mugged than girls sexually assaulted like this in Madison recently, so don't ask if we know how vulnerable a girl is while walking alone.
Anonymous (March 5, 2007 @ 7:04pm):
you all can do your part by voting for somebody for mayor and alderman who is actually going to do something about the violent attacks on campus instead of miraculously driving up our tax levy...thanks mayor dave, for neutering and micro-managing our halloween, sending more police to the bars on friday and saturday nights than to protect students at risk of violent attacks, and for letting the bureaucrats take casa bianca's away from us.
seriously though, maybe if 10 storm troopers weren't raiding the state bar looking to carry off attractive 18 year old girls in handcuffs, something could be done about the repeated and constant instances of violent crime throughout the city and campus neighborhoods. i want mayor dave's head on a silver platter.
Anonymous (March 5, 2007 @ 10:05pm):
Just curious, but could somebody include citations for all these numbers tossed around.
Anonymous (March 5, 2007 @ 11:35pm):
"Its sad and pathetic that when a women is forced to be sexually used for another gratification we blame her."
No one is blaming her, idiot! We simply refuse to rush to judgment until we know all the facts. Where is your disgust with all the man-hating feminists who insist that the victim is always telling the truth? Don't forget about the attention-seekers, lady!
Anonymous (March 5, 2007 @ 11:45pm):
"And false reporting for rape is no more common than it is for any other crime."
I take it you've never been accused before.
"So how about instead of calling the victim out, we start talking about the two men who thought it was okay to attack her?"
First, we need to determine if she was really attacked.
"Secondly, comments about this being a hoax or about this being an "attention-seeking female" sicken me. I can only assume these comments were made by ignorant males who have no idea how vulnerable a woman is walking alone at night."
Yeah, and it also sickens me to hear male-bashers like you blame and categorize all men as sick predators when there are 1)so many men that do care and 2) so many men who have also been victimized and 3)so many women predators preying on others people's kids. It's like this: we men are finally fed up with the double standards of women when it comes to sex crimes. We're also fed up with the inexcusable silence among women in facing the fact that there are women that are just as vicious as some men.
Anonymous (March 5, 2007 @ 11:54pm):
Hey, don't blame men if they are no longer as gung-ho about "getting the bastards that did this." Sorry girls, but we guys aren't about to whip ourselves into a hysteria every time a woman gets raped. Once a week you find a story in the news about a woman committing a sex crime against a boy who's not even old enough to drive yet. Those boy victims can be as young as age 6! And yet we don't hear a peep out of any women condemning women who commit these crimes against other people's children!
So why the hell should men care any more? Give me one freakin' good reason why I should even think about it? I've talked to people who lived here in Madison back in the 1990's and they told me there were way too many man-hating bitches in this town. I read once where a group of women committed a hate crime against some gays. Women! I couldn't believe it! So don't get all pissed off if we men decide we got more important things to do with our time. You reap what you sow. Maybe if you had more respect for men they would act so callous toward you. Time to grow up.
Anonymous (March 6, 2007 @ 12:23am):
I agree with 11:54. You women have been bitching about men-this/men-that for too long. Every time a woman is assaulted somewhere, all you do is take it out on the next male that happens along.
And what about the women who earned their fame and fortune making absolute total sluts of themselves? Ever heard of Madonna? Britney Spears? Look at how obscenely rich they are? Now get on MySpace.com and look at all the 14-year-old girls making little tramps of themselves for all the world to see. You really think all the men in the world are logging on till the server crashes just to look at them? Christ almighty, I'd croak if any daughter, sister or niece of mine started showing herself off like that! And I'm a guy! then there's the latest anti-gay slur delivered by none other than Ann Coulter-a woman. Okay, maybe there are a lot of you women out there who hate her just as much as anybody else, but I sure as hell don't hear many women speaking out against her. Whassup, girls? Hello?
So you see, it's not like we men suddenly got possessed and decided to go out and rape the whole world. We are just waiting for all the bullshit to end. You went too far on a lot of fronts in the fight for equality. Get back in your own territory and do it right for a change. Until then...what channel was that game on?
Anonymous (March 6, 2007 @ 1:27am):
I think a "ding-ding, toot-toot" trolley will solve all our problems! Thanks Mayor Dave, don't worry about hiring more police officers or putting up more lighting in my dark neighborhood, just viva la Trolley!
Ding Ding!!!
Anonymous (March 6, 2007 @ 10:29am):
For those who wanted citations for numbers,
I highly recommend checking out the website for the Wisconsin Coalition Against Sexual Violence: wcasa.org
according to their facts and figures,
they say 1 out of 3 women and 1 out of 5 men.
And while men are upwards of 90% of perpetrators, this DOES NOT MEAN that 90% of men perpetrate. Most men are no more happy with sexual violence than women are.
While it is easy to look at this discussion board and decide that all the anti-victim statements are made by men and all the other statements are made by women, lets instead give each other the benefit of the doubt.
Women can not stop sexual violence alone. Men can not stop sexual violence alone. We have to work together!
This means women have to give men the benefit of the doubt, and that men have to start assuming the best of women as well. I really doubt that anyone would seriously say that they are "pro-rape."
Instead of fighting each other, lets fight this issue.
~Jenny (the damn system still wont let me sign in!)
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