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The number of forcible sexual offenses on Ohio State’s campus that didn’t occur in residence halls doubled in 2013 from 2012, according to OSU’s 2014 Annual Security and Fire Safety Reports, released Tuesday.
That number went to 14 in 2013 from seven in 2012, according to the report. There were nine reported in 2011.
University Police Chief Paul Denton said of those 2013 offenses, six reportedly occurred at the OSU Wexner Medical Center; two at Mirror Lake; one at Ohio Stadium; one at Thompson Library; one at Curl Drive and Peasley Street; and one at College Road and 12th Avenue.
Denton said these offenses didn’t necessarily take place in the named buildings, like Thompson Library, but could’ve taken place outside. He also said the Mirror Lake offenses didn’t seem to have occurred Mirror Lake jump night, when students annually jump into the lake before the OSU-Michigan game.
He said the increased number of offenses reported could be attributed to several factors.
“The Ohio State University continues to focus on training and education, improving our reporting process and increasing awareness of issues related to sexual violence, which is leading to increased reporting of these offenses,” Denton said in a Tuesday email in response to the increase.
Overall, there were 25 reports of forced sexual offenses campus-wide in 2013, the report said. Eleven of those occurred in residence halls. The campus total in 2012 was 21, with 14 reported at residence halls.
The report annually compiles crime data on and around campus to comply with the Clery Act. That act requires colleges and universities to disclose information about crime on and around campus spaces, and was designed to make college campus crime information readily available.
The 2014 report includes crime statistics from University Police, Student Life, the Columbus Division of Police and other university offices and departments, as well as various police agencies.
No formal police report is needed for an offense to be included in the report’s statistics, Denton said.
Some crimes were reported less in 2013, according to the report. Drug law violations decreased more than 28 percent. There were also nine burglaries reported in 2013, down from 22 the year before.
