A Colorado criminology professor says sexual misconduct on a college campus is not limited to male perpetrators. Callie Marie-Rennison, with the University of Colorado in Denver, led a session last week in Lexington as part of the National Conference on Campus Climate and Adjudication of Sexual Misconduct. It was sponsored by UK.
Marie-Rennison says overseeing two campuses in Colorado revealed complaints filed against males and females. “If you’re talking about the most severe type of violence, which would be say a rape, yes those cases have predominately males that are accused of this, but if we’re talking about intimate partner violence, no we saw a pretty even split as far as who was perpetrator or respondent and who was complainant or victim,” said Marie-Renneson.
Marie-Rennison says it’s a misperception that everyone who comes through the door with sexual misconduct complaints are students. She said in Colorado half were staff, faculty and people affiliated with the university.
The Colorado professor believes the Brett Kavanaugh Supreme Court Hearing could result in more honest discussions about sexual assault among families and friends.
Marie-Rennison doesn’t envision fallout from the Kavanaugh hearing to create tension in most male-female relationships, but it may cause more people to disclose previous sexual assaults. “When I hear somebody say ‘I don’t know anybody that’s been raped.’ And my response is ‘Yeah, you do.’ But, you’ve somehow done something to make them not trust in telling you that. So, maybe that part of it can be a healthy kind of outcome also. I don’t think it’s going to damage healthy relationships,” explained Marie-Rennison.
Marie-Rennison says hopefully more people in dating relationships will think about their behavior and how it impacts other people. She adds, quote, “if you’re not sure if what you’re doing is considered sexual assault, I would say don’t do that.”?
