As sexual assault on college campuses becomes increasingly prevalent, a police report obtained by The Phoenix shows one instance that reflects a much larger issue.
A Loyola student told police he was at a restaurant with a group of people — including a Loyola professor — just hours before he says he was drugged and sexually assaulted.
After refusing for weeks to provide details to The Phoenix, Loyola officials recently confirmed the person listed as a professor in the police report indeed once worked for the school, but wasn’t employed last semester when the assault was reported and isn’t currently on the payroll. Loyola officials said there are no plans to employ the person in the future.
According to the police records, the student, the professor and others were at a bar near Loyola’s Lake Shore Campus. The student told police the last thing he remembered was leaving the bar and waking up the next morning naked and sore in his apartment. That morning, he’d also received texts from the professor and another person he’d been with the night before, police records say.
Police refuse to elaborate on the professor or anyone else, only saying there have been no arrests, there are no suspects and the investigation is in a holding pattern.
“This case is pending physical evidence from the crime lab,” Chicago Police Department (CPD) spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said in an email to The Phoenix. Right now, it’s “not clear to police who the offender may be but there were several people present that we have questioned.”
Loyola spokesperson Evangeline Politis declined to comment, except to say, “As we were able to confirm that the case is still being investigated by CPD, we are unable to comment.”
Tim Love, who works with reports of sexual misconduct in Loyola’s Title IX department, said via email: “Because there was no indication that their status as former faculty had any bearing on the incident, and because the University has/had no ‘jurisdiction’ or authority over the individual, the matter was deferred entirely to the police for resolution.”
At the bar, the student was introduced to others, including a person previously unknown to the student, he told police.
The student later told police he remembered leaving the bar with two people, including the Loyola professor. That’s according to the initial police report, which was obtained by The Phoenix through a Freedom of Information Act request. The report was released to The Phoenix by CPD with names redacted.
In text messages, the professor said the student went to another bar near the Lake Shore Campus after leaving the first one. The police records say the text messages show the professor asking the student if he was okay.
The student also received texts from another person he’d been with that night, he told police. The “text conversation” ended after the student inquired about what happened the night before, according to police records.
The student went to Northwestern Memorial Hospital, where he underwent tests to see whether he’d been raped, police records say. At the hospital, the student said his ear was cut and his shoulders were sore, according to police records.
He told police he believed he was “roofied,” referring to the drug Rohypnol, which is often used in date rape because it makes those who ingest it less responsive and hinders inhibitions. Supplemental police reports indicate the victim believed he was drugged because he was “in a haze” for days after the alleged assault. He also said he couldn’t eat and had headaches.
Another CPD spokesman, Howard Ludwig, wouldn’t say if there’s further evidence supporting the involvement of a date rape drug because the case is still open. It’s also too early in the investigation to say whether there were one or multiple offenders.
Statistically, this case is unlikely to be solved. Nationally, rape cases in 2017 were cleared at 32 percent, the lowest rate since the 1960s, according to FBI data provided to the Associated Press.
Since there’s been little development in the case, according to police, the case could likely reach the same non-outcome that most do.
In Loyola’s Annual Safety and Security report, which is publicly available, eight cases of rape were reported in on-campus residence halls during the 2017 calendar year, an increase from three reports in 2016. Information from 2018 isn’t yet publicly available. In documents sent by Loyola to the Illinois attorney general, 55 instances of off-campus sexual violence were reported.
If anyone is in need of sexual assault resources, the Wellness Center encourages calling the Loyola Sexual Assault Advocacy line at 773-494-3810. The National Sexual Assault Hotline is available 24/7 at 800-656-8673.
Loyola students looking to report sexual misconduct to the Title IX office can call 773-508-3733 or use the university’s Ethics Line reporting hotline, Loyola’s system for handling various complaints.
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