Sexual Assault

Sexual assault is unwanted sexual contact. If you've had something happen, you may not know what to call it. Was it a sexual assault? Rape?You don’t have to know what to call it in order to get help sorting through some common concerns.

If the assault happened in the past 120 hours (possibly up to a week), there are some time-sensitive considerations such as the decision to have medical evidence collected and/or address other health concerns. Even outside of this time frame, medical support may still be accessed. If the assault happened longer than a week ago, the option to report to the police, gather evidence and have an investigationپ澱ٲ.

Reporting and medical support is not the only thing to consider. You may be experiencing a range ofimpact andhave concerns about housing, academics, relationships, safety, and more. The Office of Victim Assistance (OVA) is a free and confidential resource to help with these concerns.

Explore your options

Especially in the first 120 hours (up to a week), medical concerns like pregnancy, sexually transmitted infections (STI) and or injuries may be important to address. Even after 120-hours, treatment is available and may put your mind at ease. There is a difference between gettingٰ𲹳ٳԳfrom a medical professional and havingmedical evidencecollected for possible investigation.

Treatment

If you need immediate emergency treatment, is the closest hospital to CU.

If you have injuries related to an assault, and want treatment but no evidence collection,you cango to any doctor/medical facility. Keep in mind that if you are under the age of 18orhave certain physical injuries, doctors may be required to report certain bodily injury to police. You can ask about reporting requirements before receiving treatment, and contact OVA or to discuss this more.

If you do not want or feel you need an emergency room visit, but are worried about sexually transmitted infections (STI) or pregnancy, emergency contraception and/or STI treatment is available at several health care providers includinglocated on campus, ,and .

Medical evidence collection

You can learn more about evidence collection by contacting CU OVA or MESA. Advocates are often available to meet you at the hospital to offer support and information. You can have a medical forensic exam (MFE) done even if you do not know whether or not you want to report this to the police. If you think there is a possibility that you will decide to report this to the police at a later date, it is best to get the exam done as early as possible.

, also known as a medical forensic exam (MFE), is done at or at in Longmont by trained Sexual Assault Nurse Examiners (SANE). Even though it’s common to want to bathe after a sexual assault, please consider not to if you want to have evidence collected, as some evidence might be lost. If you have bathed, it is still possible to collect evidence.

Once the exam is completed the police will be called to collect the evidence. It is your choice if you would like to speak with the police. There are three options for reporting and how the evidence collected is stored in CO:

  1. anonymously in which the survivor's name is not included in the evidence that the police collect, the evidence will only be stored, it cannot be tested for anonymous reports.
  2. medical reporting, the survivor's name is included as part of the evidence and the evidence can be tested, but at the time the survivor does not want to work with law enforcement.
  3. law enforcement reporting, survivor is participating ina criminal justice process and evidence is tested .
    1. These options are the survivors choice.
      • Please note this does not apply to minors. .

Payment: The medical forensic exam itself will be paid for, either by the police department based on the jurisdiction the crime occured or by the Colorado Department of Criminal Justice, this depends on if the survivor is participating in a law enforcement report. Anything not included in the exam itself (Plan B if applicable,antibiotics, emergency department fees, other medical treatment, etc.), will not be covered. There are options to help to cover these costs not paid by or covered by insurance,includingand/or.OVA can help you learn about theseoptions. .

Transportation:If you would like to get a medical forensic exam without consultation you can call 911 directly and tell the dispatcher that you want to report a sexual assault and would like to preserve evidence.The police can transport you to see a SANE nurse and a MESA advocate may be called to meet you at the hospital to provide information on resources and support. If youdonot want to contact the police you can go directly to or and ask to see a SANE nurse. If you do not have transportation to the hospital students can go to Wardenburg and ask for a travel voucher. You can also take the , using your CU RTD bus pass to the location.Other transportation options to get to the hospital are taxi cab (303-777-7777), Lyft, Uber (ride-share) and/or a ride with a friend/family/support person.

Sometimes there is a wait at the hospital; please consider bringing a change of clothes, a friend, or whatever you need to be comfortable.

Sexual assault can be reported at anytime. In Coloradoas of May 2016, the case may be prosecuted up to 20 years after the incident. If the incident happened when you were under the age of 15, in Colorado, there is no statutory limits on when it can be reported.

Police

Reporting to the police is not the same as pressing charges. At the CU Police Department (if assault happened on campus), you may be able to meet a detective or patrol officer and make a report without immediately triggering a full scale investigation. You can learn more about the process, meet the people involved, and make an informed decision. Other jurisdictions may or may not offer this option, hypothetical calls could be an option to learn more.

If you want to report, call police of the jursidiction it happened in.The officer’s first priority will be your physical and emotional health. They may recommend that you seek medical attention and possibly recieve a medical forensic exam by a SANE for evidence collection. You have choice on what you want to do.

Some victims/survivors want to file an “informational” report with the intention of making the police aware of their situation, other people want to file a report that will lead to an investigation and possibly criminal charges. Plea