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June 9, 1997
Legal Requirements and UCSC Policy for Reporting Sex Offenses
As national awareness and dismay about the extent of rape and relationship violence has grown, legislation has passed that is designed to provide expanded reporting of incidents as a way of offering additional protection for survivors. This collective national determination to address this devastating epidemic is long overdue. These legislative changes in reporting have created some legitimate concerns about confidentiality. This is an area that needs special attention.
The reporting requirements outlined in the UCSC Sex Offense Policy comply with federal law enacted in 1994. The requirements apply to university officials who do not have "significant counseling responsibilities." (And at UCSC, the only university employees with significant counseling responsibilities are psychologists working for Counseling and Psychological Services.)
In compliance with federal law, information about campus-related rapes and sexual assaults is collected by the UCSC Title IX Officer--and the information that is communicated by university officials to the Title IX Officer about reported instances of campus-related rapes and sexual assaults is reported anonymously, i.e., the survivor's name is not disclosed. Past rapes that are not campus-related are not reported. The report only asks for enough information to distinguish one reported incident from another (general time/general location) and any information that would have a bearing on campus safety (for example, was this a stranger or acquaintance rape? Was a weapon used? Was a drug, like Rohypnol, involved?). Lastly, the report asks for confirmation that the university official provided the survivor with information about resources and options.
However, if a student comes to a university official and specifically accuses someone, by name, of committing a felony (including rape or sexual assault), then the university official receiving this information is obligated, for obvious legal reasons, to forward this information as well.