Two cases of suspected druggings were reported to officers at Smith-Steeb Hall on Feb. 24.. Credit: Lantern File photo
Two Ohio State police officers responding early Feb. 24, to a call about possible underage drinking instead found two female students who suspected they had been drugged.
The officers’ reports, obtained by The Lantern Tuesday, follow three other documents that detailed alleged druggings at campus-area bars and an off-campus party. All of the reports prompted university officials to publicly warn students about drugged drinks in recent weeks.
The most recent reports show police responded to a call at Smith-Steeb Hall where they found a female student in a partial state of undress in a men’s bathroom stall. She was described as lying on the floor and blocking the door.
According to the police report, the woman showed “obvious signs of impairment,” including slurred speech, slowed movement, and bloodshot and glassy eyes. She told one of the officers she thought she had been at a frat party but could not remember, according to the report.
According to the report, the officer identified the woman as a resident of Park-Stradley Hall and confiscated a fake ID for destruction.
The woman and her friend said they had attended a “TEK” frat party where they were given mixed drinks, the report stated. She said she did not know how she got to Smith-Steeb Hall or how she ended up in the bathroom partially undressed.
When the officer asked if she believed she was sexually assaulted, she began to cry and said she did not want to talk or think about it, the report stated.
According to the reports, police interviewed a second woman at Smith-Steeb Hall who also suspected she had been drugged at an off-campus party. EMS and the Columbus Police Department were called to the scene, but the Columbus officers did not file a report after the paramedics said they believed the woman had not been drugged.
Names of those involved and floor numbers were redacted from the reports. University spokesman Ben Johnson cited state laws meant to preserve confidential law enforcement investigatory records and to protect the identity of a suspect who was not charged with an offense.
Medical information was redacted due to the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, Johnson stated in an email.
Johnson stated in an email that the university has received 17 reports of druggings, but some suspected druggings are covered by more than one report, so there are not a total of 17 incidents under investigation.
The five reports The Lantern received were part of the 17. The other 12 were made through Ohio State’s Title IX office and are exempt from The Lantern’s original public records request, Johnson said.
On Feb. 14, The Ohio State Department of Public Safety released a Neighborhood Safety Notice in response to the reports that acknowledged possible occurrences of criminal drugging at off-campus parties and bars. It warned students to drink and party responsibly and to “report suspicious activity to the police.”
Javaune Adams-Gaston, senior vice president of the Office of Student Life, and Monica Moll, director of the Department of Public Safety, sent out a safety reminder to “Party Smart” to students on Friday. They also warned students about drugged drinks and how to take precautions at parties.
