By MELINDA SEMADENI
Experts say many rapes and sexual assaults go unreported due to the number of factors that influence a victim.
A recent FBI crime report indicated only 16 percent of rapes are reported to the police.
The report indicated 43 percent of the women did not report the crime because they believed no action would be taken, 27 percent of the women thought the incident was a private matter, 12 percent feared the action of the police and 12 percent of the women believed rape was too small of a crime to report.
Mindy Woodhouse, team coordinator for the Utah County Rape Crisis Team, said the statistics they receive from rape victims they help are higher than those reported to the police, because many victims fear going to the police.
Unaccounted rapes could lead to a false sense of security, Woodhouse said. Utah County statistics show an average of 80 reports a year. These numbers indicate that six out of ten rapes go unreported.
“A single rapist commits an estimated 30 rapes before they are caught,” said Marleene Williams, a counselor at the BYU Counseling Center.
Woodhouse said many rapes go unreported because of fear of the attacker — it is someone the victim knows who lives down the street. She said the victims fear ruining their life, of not being believed, or of being blamed for doing something wrong.
Williams agrees with Woodhouse and said rape creates emotional and psychological problems, as well as feelings of guilt.
“A victim may experience stress symptoms, intense flashbacks, intrusive or repetitive thoughts, difficulty sleeping, difficulty feeling safe and trusting others and disruptions in relationships,” Williams said.
“Rape does happen at BYU,” Williams said, “and it doesn’t matter whether it happens on or off campus, at home or during a break — we are here to help them work through it.”
“Counseling can be helpful while working through the experience and is free to full-time students, as well as confidential,” Williams said. “We are not there to judge people, but to provide support in a safe environment and help them understand what to do the next time.”
Williams also cited a passage in The Book of Mormon, Another Testament of Jesus Christ, in Mosiah 18, saying members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are here to “help bear one another’s burdens as the prophet Alma states.”
“This religious perspective,” Williams said, “can help victims understand that they do not have to be tough and bear the burden alone.”
“There are many rape myths, one being that if one does what they are supposed to they won’t be raped,” she said. “This is false because innocent people do get raped, and even though this is a safe community, no place is completely safe.”
In fact, 70 percent of Utah County date rape victims know their attackers, according to the Utah Center of Women and Children in Crisis.
Fearing what others will think of them causes many victims not to report the incident, Woodhouse said.
“Virtue is something that cannot be taken away from anyone; it can only be given away voluntarily,” said Maxine Murdock, clinical psychologist. “If, for example, a person is robbed, does that make him or her a thief? Or if someone takes your life, are you therefore guilty of murder? Certainly not.”
“And, of course, the same is true of rape: the guilt lies with the perpetrator, not with the victim,” Murdock said.
The reasons that a victim may or may not report a rape vary because it involves both psychological and emotional trauma, Williams said.
“It is important to report rapes, because unreported rape victims are inevitably raped again,” Barber said. “The reason is the rapist knows he raped you and you didn’t report it, and he knows he has a victim who is afraid and won’t report. Remember, report, report, report.”
Williams said she would urge victims to “come in and get some support and help, you have no reason to go through this alone.”
The BYU Counseling Center is located in 1500 ELWC and can be reached at 378-3035. The Utah County Rape Crisis Team may also be contacted 24 hours a day, seven days a week at their hotline 377-5500.
