Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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Wedne RAF The ultima a universa By Jeannie Ralston Rapists are these thieves that steal intimate privacy and often mental well-being from thousands of women each year. But unlike valuable property, these intangible losses are usually not recoverable nor are they covered by any insurance policy. One way, however, to insure and assure yourselt against sexual assault is to be aware of how to avoid it and what to do if it happens to you. "Lots of people don't think twice about rape. They think, 'It'll never happen to me.' Awareness needs to be beefed up," said Mike O'Donnell, a graduate student in public health and the USC liaison to Columbia's "People Against Sexual Assault" organization, which is one group sponsoring Rape Awareness Week, Sept. 2127. But sexual assault is too serious to be taken lightly. "Short of homicide, it (rape) is the 'ultimate violation of self,' " the U.S. Supreme Court declared in 1977. "It is highly reprehensible both in a moral sense and in its almost total contempt for the personal integrity and autonomy of the female victim...." And it happens too often to think it won't happen to you. One out of every four women will be molested ai some point in her life, according "to a report by the Columbia Area Mental Health Center. An estimated 10,000 women were raped last year in South Carolina, but only 1,000 were reported. There were almost 100 reported rapes in Columbia last year, and 56 were reported during I IBM?III II IIIMII?lflllinilllllili ?sday's >F <s te theft of I threat to the first half of this year. Too many rapes g( unreported, said Richard A Harpootlian, deputy solicitor for Richland County. In an attempt to receive a lesser sentence, one mar recently charged with twc counts of rape agreed to tell the police of other rapes he had committed, Ilarpootliar said. Thirty of the rapes h admitted to, over 60 percent, L 1 I 1 A. _ nau never ueen reporieu ic the police. The main reason rapes are not reported is that many, over 40 percent, are com mitted by someone the victim knows. The rapist could be a neighbor, a husband separated from his wife, a relative, a work associate or, most often, an acquaintance "They (rapists) may be people who know your daily routine of events. They're often acquaintances someone you'll almost b trusting," O'Donnell pointec out. The remaining percent ol rapes are committed bj strangers looking for womer vulnerable to attack. "The weaker the attacker the weaker the victim. Th< attacker just wants t< control and humiliat< another person," O'Donnel said. "The real sickos go foi young girls and old ladies." But most rapists are no "abnormal" or "sick." Mer who rape are from all walk: of life and ethni< backgrounds. More than hal of rapists are under 25 yean old, and three out of five rapists are married, leading normal sex lives, according to the Richland Countj Sheriff's The myths Rapists do not rape out < sexual frustration as it generally assumed, but 01 of anger, O'Donnell sail "Thie ic nnp mic^nnppntini Rape is a crime < aggression, not a crime < RAP women sexuality," he said. ) Rapists are not usually motivated by uncontrollable sexual desires. Over 70 percent of all rapes are i plannel with both victim and i place decided on > beforehand, according to the I sheriff's office. Other myths about rape include the theory that women who are sexually assaulted are "asking for it." Studies show only 4 percent of reported rapes involve provocative behavior on the part of the victim. Another myth is rape cannot happen to a decent i woman. But the fact is it can I happen to anyone. Rape i victims come from all socioeconomic backgrounds, and women as young as 8 months and as old as 85 have been sexually assaulted. Often the boyfriend or husband of the victim cannot i accept ine laci mai even 1 decent women can be raped. "Some guys think, 'She's not f what she used to be,' " i O'Donnell said. "This is a 1 big problem." A woman who has been , raped needs a lot of j emotional support and en) couragement, especially i from her husband or 1 boyfriend, if she is going to p pick up the pieces of her life. A woman's initial reaction t to rape is shock and anxiety. i "She is totally appalled thai s something like this could : happen to her," O'Donnell f said. > She then goes through an j adjustment stage, denying I that it happened or jusl I suppressing the thought of it i Then comes the depression. "She's really going to fc* down in the dumps. There's a lot of anger. She probablj can't sleep at night or eat " She's got phobias, fears anc is paranoid that the rapisi will come back," O'Donnel JJ said. d. This is when counselinj n. services such as the one a of Richland Memorial Hospita of can help the victim get bad 1 l> tn a into life. As part of the hospitals sexual assault program, a social worker will remain with a victim throughout the medical examination and i assists her with follow-up medical and emotional i counseling. n i rr&uau i/ons I i While rape is a threat to ; every woman, there are precautions that can decrease the chances of ; being sexually assaulted. "The best thing is to try tc avoid situations that lend * themselves to possible rape Use common sense." Lt : N.D. Sanders of Campus J Police said. "Don't go out ir : dark isolated areas b> yourself. I think women gel tired of hearing that, but it's I so important." t If it is necessary for you tc 1 be out alone at night, plar c your route in advance A p*1 /"Ill i_ Notice the locations of store that stay open late, building with doormen and police an fire stations. Avoid dar doorways, shrubbery alleys, unlit parking lots an dark stairwells. "When you call for hel] yell 'fire' instead of 'rape People will come out if the are concerned about the property," Sanders said, i Be extra careful if yoi car is parked in a dark an or in a parking garage. "You should check tl back seat of your car befoi getting in. It's a oerfe hiding place," Sanders said Because over half of a I rapes occur in the victim home, your house or apar ment should be made < burglar-proof as possible. Install chain locks an J peep holes. "Never open th ' door late at night before yo have positive identificatioi and always keep the chain o when you open the door, | O'Donnell advised. If you are ever confront by a rapist with a weapon is best to remain calm ai | try talking the attacker o IKJL lllO A 11 1 HUllO . If he has no weapon, thrc your attacker off guard. "If you're going to resii don't do it half-heartedly Sanders said. "He's out hurt you. Make sure you hi him enough to get away fro him." The best defense is strike him in his vulnerab areas ? his eyes, eai 1 Adam's apple or groin. If it happens Despite precautions, if y are raped there are cerU things you should know. First. reDort th#? ra . I immediately to the poli< You can decide later if y want to prosecute. For purposes of gatheri evidence to be used in a tri the Columbia Poli department strongly advis ? ' vhiii liui dlllUI drink, urinate, bath Features Editor Every 10 minutes someone in the United States is robbed, not of a car or diamonds, but of something even more valuable ? nprsnnal rfiunitv : i lii! . v nil ill * ? dJ / III' I ?s change her clothes or comb ;s her hair before a doctor id examines ner. k 4 The first thing a victim /, wants to do is go home, take id a bath and pretend it didn't happen," O'Donnell said. "If p, the evidence is washed i.' away, though, it's going to be y hard to trace the rapist.'' ir Many women wait to report a rape by someone ir they know, which reduces ia the chances of conviction. Eight out of 10 rapists who ie were not known by their re victims are convicted, but ct the number of convictions is I Ipcc u/hpn thf? viMim Ifnnu/Q ill the rapist, Harpootlian said, 's In the past, many women t- would not take rape cases to as court because they were afraid of getting on the d witness stand and discussing ie the crime. But with a twou year-old law in South i, Carolina prohibiting defense >n attorneys from bringing up " the victim's past sexual relations, more women are jd going through with the it conviction, Harpootlian said, id Conviction for criminal ut sexual conduct carries up to a 30 year sentence. "And ?w once we get them into court, we can usually convict it, them," Harpootlian said. ?" "It used to be real rough to on a lady to report a rape. ll*t But times have changed. m n^i:? i untc air inui e sy mpauieuc and better trained," said to Harold Cambers, an in le vestigator for the Columbia s, Police Department. Female officers in the police and sheriff's department and female wit ness/victim advocates in the solicitor's office "help take " care of all the emotional ou baggage that gets jostled jjn around in these cases," Harpootliansaid. pe "Rape is no longer ce. something a woman is ou marked with a red letter A for," Harpootlian said, ng "Society's perception of al, rape is changed. It's ce recognized as a serious, ;es crime of force and le, ctKgicsKiun ana a signiticani le, social problem."