The event was organized by the ASUC Office of the President in conjunction with ASUC senators Sadia Saifuddin, Rosemary Hua and Megan Majd. In order to raise awareness of such crimes on campus, victims of sexual assault shared their stories.

According to a Berkeley Police Department crime report, there were 39 reported incidents of sexual assault in the city of Berkeley in 2012, up from 20 incidents in 2011.

“(Sexual assault) is something that doesn’t discriminate against color or gender,” Saifuddin said. “It’s something that happens to a lot of people.”

According to Bay Area Women Against Rape training coordinator Agustina Perez, 85 percent of sexual assaults are committed by a person whom the victim knows, and only one in 10 victims report the crime.

Student attendees included members of the campus sorority system and the ASUC. The workshop was facilitated by UCPD, University Health Services and BAWAR.

“(Events like Fight Back) allow survivors of sexual assault who are silenced to have a voice,” Hua said. “But it also allows for facetime between UCPD and students (and) facilities a discussion.”

Speakers at the event noted the importance of discussing sexual assault in an open and safe environment.

“The reason why sexual violence is rising at such alarming rates is because people don’t talk about it,” Perez said. “Anything that will get people to talk and create safe spaces is a step in the right direction.”

Community leaders provided attendees with resources to defend themselves against attack.

During the workshop, UCPD officers offered a pepper spray demonstration as well as basic self-defense techniques. Officers said one of the most basic but useful techniques in the case of an assault is to shout for help. The workshop also offered free pepper spray to participants.

“There is nothing that anyone can do that warrants (or) causes rape,” Perez said during her presentation. “The only person responsible for rape is the one committing it.”

Director and Title IX Officer Denise Oldman of the Office for the Prevention of Harassment and Discrimination said that it is important to know that there are allies in the community for sexual assault victims. She addressed the various resources available to students, including medical, psychological and emotional health services, residential needs and prevention help.

Members of the ASUC and campus community alike said they hope events like Fight Back will educate the students that attended and continue to raise awareness about sexual assault and violence within the UC Berkeley community.

“I feel like it’s important to have events that raise awareness about how critical an issue (sexual violence is) both on campus and in general,” said sophomore Taylor Fugere, who is a member of Greeks Against Sexual Assault and involved in the Gender Equity Resource Center.

UCPD Officer Brendan Tinney said he hopes to see more involvement with sexual assault prevention from other groups on campus, such as fraternities.

“I think there’s some interest specifically in the part of fraternities, at least some of them,” Tinney said. “But I’m waiting for them to reach out. You don’t (only) teach the group that’s interested in the topic.”

Contact Jennie Yoon at jyoon@dailycal.org.

Correction(s):
A previous version of this article incorrectly stated that there had been 39 incidents of sexual assault on the UC Berkeley campus this year, a 95 percent increase from 19 incidents the previous year. In fact, there were 39 reported incidents of sexual assault in the city of Berkeley in 2012, up from 20 incidents in 2011.

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To lead the tobacco-free initiative, the campus has created the Tobacco-Free Berkeley Steering Committee to design and implement transitional policies. The committee is composed of representatives from several campus groups, including the ASUC Senate, University Health Services and the City of Berkeley Public Health Division.

“Smokers who are trying to quit have a much higher relapse rate if they are exposed to tobacco smoke,” said Joel Moskowitz, director for the Center for Family and Community Health and co-chair of the committee. “By moving smoking off campus, smokers are more likely to try and quit and be more successful in quitting.”

According to Steve Maranzana, assistant manager of the Health and Safety Team at the Office of Environment, Health & Safety and project manager for the initiative, the committee’s focus will be on education, but the committee is currently planning on leveraging existing processes, such as the Student Code of Conduct and administrative supervisory actions, to enforce the ban.

“All members of the university community will share the responsibility of adhering to and enforcing the policy and will have the responsibility for bringing it to the attention of visitors and guests,” Maranzana said.

University Health Services will provide several smoking cessation programs and resources, including a one-on-one cessation assistance to develop a quit plan, free quit kits and a free nicotine replacement therapy starter pack.

Smoking is currently not allowed inside of or within 25 feet of campus buildings. However, smoking, the use of smokeless tobacco products and the use of unregulated nicotine products will be completely banned from all outdoor spaces at any UC campus in 2014 following a mandate issued by UC President Mark Yudof last year.

According to Trish Ratto, manager of the Health Matters wellness program for faculty and staff, the prevalence of smoking is prevalent among 3 to 9 percent of UC Berkeley employees and 6 to 10 percent of students.

Jeremy Palmer, a UC Berkeley senior who frequently smokes on campus as a way to relieve stress, said the university should instead should offer the alternative of designated smoking areas.

“It puts smokers at a disadvantage,” Palmer said. “I have a right to smoke, and they are trying to criminalize what is not criminal.”

To Amanda Fallin, a postdoctorate researcher at the UCSF Center for Tobacco Control Research and Education, policies like these at colleges are vital to the prevention of developing smoking habits.

“It is important to implement policies like these because almost all adult daily smokers start before the age of 26,” Fallin said. “Policies like these can help or stop young adults from starting to smoke or stop smoking.”

Andrea Guzman covers academics and administration. Contact her at aguzman@dailycal.org and on Twitter @guzmanandrea5.

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The new bins align with the campus’s goal to reach zero waste by 2020, according to a statement from the Green Initiative Fund, a student-supported fund that helped finance the bins’ development.

A main reason for introducing the new bins is that emptying the old cement bins was a primary contributor to the $320,000 in workers’ compensation the campus spent from 2004 to 2009 for trash-lifting injuries, said Greg Ryan, an ergonomist with University Health Services.

“One of the goals of the project was to reduce the ergonomic strain on the body,” Ryan said.

Ryan explained that removing heavy trash liners from bins that open from the top puts strain on the shoulder and back due to the lifting involved.

The new bins, which are closed on top, are better at keeping out rain and pests, said Christine Shaff, communications director for UC Berkeley’s Facilities Services.

According to Shaff, the new bins are being manufactured locally by a company in Richmond and cost $875 each.

The bins are also designed to be interchangeable, said Michal Shuldman, a graduate student in the department of integrative biology who initiated the project as a member of the Graduate Assembly’s Sustainability Committee.

“The name plates and the openings (the different colors and shapes) can be changed out depending on what waste stream needs bins,” said Katherine Walsh, coordinator of the Green Initiative Fund, in an email.

The university intends to place compost bins in the future, but right now, the new bins around campus are for landfill, mixed paper, bottles and cans, Walsh said.

The current installment of bins follows a multiple-year development and implementation process.

“Lots of people played into the (development) process … it was a collaboration between graduate and undergraduate students … and many others,” Shuldman said.

Shuldman wrote a grant through the Green Initiative Fund for more outdoor trash bins on campus. At the same time, Theron Klos, the campus’s grounds operations manager, requested funds for new bins because of the health hazards associated with emptying cement bins, and the two decided to pool finances toward their common goal, Shuldman said.

Students from the UC Berkeley College of Environmental Design created 3-D renderings of possible designs. After the mock-up stage, more than 10 prototypes were considered before settling on the final version, Ryan said.

New containers will be installed over the next three months, starting with areas near Upper Sproul Plaza, Dwinelle Hall, Wheeler Hall, Doe Library, Moffitt Library, California Hall and Memorial Glade, Walsh said in an email.

As a last step, Shuldman suggested an education project to ensure bins are used properly and the establishment of a “waste audit” to monitor improvement.

Contact Christine Tyler at ctyler@dailycal.org.

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The provision, called the Campus Sexual Violence Elimination Act, will ensure that colleges provide more measures against sexual violence, such as providing survivors with contact information for legal and counseling services, mandating training for officials who handle disciplinary procedures and including cases of stalking and domestic violence in campus crime reports.

With a vote of 286-138 in favor of the bill, the House passed a version of the bill with provisions that would expand coverage of its services and protections for LGBT, American Indian and immigrant survivors of sexual and domestic violence, providing them with grants and legal aid.

Public health instructor for University Health Services Allan Creighton said that although the university maintains robust violence-prevention programs, he anticipates that the provision will push for increased state funding for the university to strengthen such programs.

“Berkeley’s pretty good in terms of staying timely and making sure our policies are up-to-date for preventing sexual violence, but there can always be room for more,” Creighton said. “And I think that the passing of the act is going to make a lot more people aware about the things (related to sexual violence) that happen on campus.”

UC Berkeley junior Sarah Beth Alcabes, the director of this year’s “The Vagina Monologues,” emphasized the impact of student groups and activities as well as the effect of preventive policies.

“I think what student groups can contribute is the perspective of the students themselves and play a role in education and awareness, especially educating communities and parents,” Alcabes said. “It’s something else to know about sexual violence in the hypothetical and another thing to know about the actual stories.”

According to a White House press release, President Obama expects to sign the bill into law, recognizing its significance for saving lives and eliminating violence.

Contact Yvonne Ng at yng@dailycal.org.

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Reported rapes rose from 20 in 2011 to 39 in 2012, according to crime statistics from 2012, presented by Berkeley police officers to the City Council in a special workshop last Tuesday. This is the highest number of reported rapes in Berkeley since 2000.

At the session, council members raised concerns over the fact that these incidents are largely occurring in Berkeley’s student-aged population — late teens to 30s — and that the majority of incidents happen between acquaintances, friends or people in former dating relationships.

“When someone thinks of rape, they think of a stranger attacking a woman on the street, or in her home,” said Berkeley police Capt. Andrew Greenwood. “But this is very rare in Berkeley.”

Of the incidents, there were only two reported “stranger” rapes on the street, with one completed and one attempted.

Alcohol and drugs are often involved in both city and campus reports of rape. Substance abuse played a role in nearly half of the city’s 39 incidents — 30 of which were rapes, with nine attempted rapes.

“Alcohol can play a large part in sexual assaults,” said UCPD spokesperson Lt. Eric Tejada. “At one point, the number of (campus) reports involving alcohol was almost 100 percent.”

While the number of rapes reported to the city’s police department has risen, UCPD has not seen a similar increase for incidents that occur on campus property. The rate has held steady at about two rapes per year for the past few years.

Many rapes, however, can go unverified or unreported to any officials, with students confidentially reporting to campus officials but never to the police, according to Allan Creighton, who manages the EmpowerU program through campus University Health Services.

EmpowerU, which commenced in 2011, requires all incoming students to attend a seminar about the potential for sexual assault and unwanted attention in a campus and urban setting.

Since the program’s inception, Creighton reports campus social services have seen a general “uptick” in the number of confidential reports by students.

“It’s possible that more students are reporting to us because they are beginning to be familiar with what counts as being hurt in these ways,” Creighton said.

City police, university police and campus officials all stress that if rapes or sexual assaults of any kind go unreported, it can be very difficult for a victim to get assistance or for a perpetrator to be caught.

“The No. 1 message we send is you can do things to prevent this,” Creighton said. “The No. 2 is that if this happens, it is not your fault. It doesn’t have to do with how you were dressed, and people don’t go out to be in abusive relationships.”

Megan Messerly covers city government. Contact her at mmesserly@dailycal.org.

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CPS consulted with UCPD, and UCPD reported that it did a thorough investigation to determine if there was, in fact, a suicide. Due to the anonymous nature of the posting, it could not identify an individual. At this time, there is no known reported suicide of a UC Berkeley student.

It takes courage for survivors of suicide to discuss their thoughts and feelings and the incredible impacts it has on their lives. We know that suicide on-campus or off impact a great number of students, faculty and staff, and we hope that survivors get the support they need whether it is through family, friends, religious organizations or professional counselors.

One of the emotions that Jordan speaks of is anger, which is real in the aftermath of a suicide. He also goes on to state that suicide is a selfish act, which research shows to be false. Most individuals who attempt and/or complete suicide have an irrational belief that they are an undue burden on others and that suicide will relieve others of their burden. In this way the suicidal individual may view his or her behavior, irrational as it may be, as selfless.

People who kill themselves typically do not want to die but want to end their pain; often, they see suicide as the only choice they have. While we can’t always predict suicidal behavior, we can be aware of the signs and symptoms that can lead to suicide. The University Health Services’ website includes a short online Depression Awareness and Suicide Prevention Training. We also encourage students, faculty and staff to seek out the support available to them on campus.

Counseling and Psychological Services provides free counseling to students on an urgent, drop-in basis and by appointment. Additionally, CPS counselors provide consultations to faculty and staff who need assistance with concerns about students. Urgent consultations are also available nights and weekends. CPS counselors can be reached at 510-642-9494. CARE services offers confidential assistance for faculty and staff Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., and can be reached at 510-643-7754.

— Susan Bell, Ph.D
assistant director, manager of outreach and consultation
Aaron Cohen, Ph.D
staff psychologist

Contact the opinion desk at opinion@dailycal.org.

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In response to the concerns, UC Berkeley’s University Health Services released a statement Thursday clarifying laws and policies that protect patient information after the circulation of blog posts questioning the ethics of campus-affiliated health care. Reporting the names and injuries of the protesters who sought treatment at the Tang Center to local law enforcement is required by state law, according to the statement.

Reclaim UC — a blog that follows UC protests and budget cuts, among other issues — along with the ACLU of Northern California and a number of individual bloggers cited concerns that the Tang Center released information on injuries protesters sustained during the demonstration, where police officers used batons to prevent the establishment of an encampment.

“The fact that medical records can be turned over to the UCPD in order to incriminate victims of police violence raises serious questions about the ethics of medical care on the UC Berkeley campus,” reads a Monday blog post from Reclaim UC.

In a Tuesday letter to Chancellor Robert Birgeneau, the ACLU of Northern California said “the (campus) must take affirmative steps to restore confidence in its medical center and to ensure that victims are not chilled from seeking medical treatment in the future” after campus police received information regarding injuries and treatment at the Tang Center for at least two protesters.

Though the ACLU letter recognized that reporting injury information is a part of state law, it said that “special procedures are necessary where law enforcement is the assailant, so that a statute intended to protect victims of violence is not perversely used against them.”

The letter comes after criminal charges were filed against eight Nov. 9 protesters. The letter states that protesters who were contacted by UCPD are “deeply troubled” that police had been informed of their visits to the health center.

The campus statement released Thursday from health services stressed that “patient privacy is a top priority … with strict privacy practices in place to protect patients.”

The health services statement highlighted the Nov. 9 event, stating that California law — penal code 11160 — requires any medical facility that treats patients who are suspected to have suffered physical injury as a result of assault or abusive conducts to report such to their local law enforcement jurisdiction.

“Medical records are not released as part of this mandatory reporting requirement, only the reporting form required by law,” the statement reads. “Full medical records may only be released with written consent from patients or a subpoena, except where specified by law.”

Geena Cova covers academics and administration.

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Currently, the case is still in its pre-trial stage — meaning the parties and the court are still sorting through which evidence can be used in the trial. Several pre-trial hearings have taken place at the Wiley W. Manuel Courthouse in Oakland between August 2011 and January to investigate the alleged incidents, which court documents claim took place between 2006 and 2011 and involved male student patients between the ages of 18 and 42 at the time.

“I think we’ve been in some discussion concerning resolution, but I don’t believe we’ve reached a resolution yet,” said Robert Beles, Kevess’ attorney, of the proceedings so far. “We’ve had meaningful discussions with the prosecutor.”

The 19 counts of sexual offense accusations outlined in the complaint filed April 27, 2011 claim that some patients were “unconscious of the nature of the act” and that Kevess “fraudulently represented that the touching served a professional purpose” for others.

Kevess resigned from his position at University Health Services on April 14, 2011. He pleaded not guilty to the charges at an arraignment April 28. Bail for Kevess was set at $745,000, which he posted.

According to court documents, should Kevess be convicted of the allegations, he would be required to register as a sex offender for the duration of his lifetime.

In a statement released last April, Claudia Covello, executive director of University Health Services, and Brad Buchman, medical director of University Health Services said that the center’s “primary focus is, as it has always been, on the needs of our patients and former patients, and on steps we can take to prevent anything remotely similar from ever happening again.”

Staff writer Veronica Reynolds contributed to this report.

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According to Berkeley Police Department Sgt. Mary Kusmiss, the rape occurred Jan. 29 at approximately 12:45 a.m. on the 2300 block of Warring Street, an area with at least two sororities and three fraternities nearby.

Kusmiss said she could not release any more information about the case, though she said the crime is classified as an acquaintance rape, meaning that the victim knew the sexual assailant personally.

In nine of 10 sexual assault cases, the victim knows the attacker, who might be an intimate partner, friend, coworker or person in a position of authority, according to UC Berkeley’s University Health Services’ website.

Berkeley “experiences very few ‘stranger’ rapes or sexual assaults in which a suspect climbs in a window or grabs a victim behind a home,” Kusmiss said in an email. She added that in instances of rape, it is rare for the attacker to be completely unknown to the victim.

Berkeley Police Department did not release further information regarding the case as to “not compromise the investigation or ‘tip’ the suspect as to what we know,” Kusmiss said in the email.

Jonathan Tam covers crime.

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The campus, campus-owned buildings and the surrounding public area — marked by Virginia Avenue to the north, Dwight Way to the south, Shattuck Avenue on the west, with the eastern border running into campus — saw 2,006 arrests or instances of disciplinary action in 2010 relating to liquor or drug use, compared to 1,921 in the previous year, according to the report released last month.

Karen Hughes, coordinator for PartySafe@Cal, a program launched by University Health Services to reduce the occurrence of harmful drinking, said the increased number of incidents may be a reflection of the campus’s commitment to crack down on these kinds of violations.

“Students are a priority. Where laws are upheld, there are less negative consequences,” Hughes said. “This is one aspect of problem reduction strategy, not the whole thing. Nationally, alcohol is an underlying factor for 27 percent of students who drop out or have to take time off of school.”

Hughes added that upholding alcohol policy and laws is an important aspect of reducing risk to students.

Some are hesitant to get completely behind the push, such as Edith Bretado, 2009 graduate and a bartender at the Bear’s Lair Pub.

“I think on one hand it’ll be a good thing because it keeps people from doing anything dumb or getting behind the wheel,” Bretado said. “But if they are just trying to create problems when you’re partying safe, then it’s unwarranted.”

This year, between move-in day in August and Labor Day, 14 incidents occurred in which UC Berkeley students had to be rushed to the hospital for alcohol-related issues, according to UCPD Lt. Marc DeCoulode. That number is twice the amount as last year during the same time period.

All 14 — 13 of whom were students — required medical attention due to excessive intoxication, and with the exception of two, all were under the age of 21.

Although UCPD does not typically initiate criminal proceedings for alcohol intoxication calls, they forward the cases to the Center for Student Conduct and Community Standards, meaning students could still face consequences on campus.

UC policy prohibits student drinking that impairs “work performance, scholarly activities, or student life,” and those in violation “may be subject to corrective action, up to and including dismissal.”

The UCPD, Berkeley Police Department and the Office of Student Conduct work together on weekly enforcement activities, according to Hughes.

“Research shows that college communities which conduct fair, consistent and sustained alcohol enforcement experience reductions in student intoxication levels — the primary factor in negative alcohol consequences,” she said.

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