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SALT LAKE CITY — Nearly 1 in 10 Utahns have been a victim of rape or attempted rape, including about 1 in 6 women, according to the results of a Utah Department of Health questionnaire released Thursday.

Using what is called a Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System poll, the state randomly surveyed about 10,000 adult Utahns by phone in 2016 and found that 9.7 percent of them "reported that someone had sex, or attempted to have sex with them without their consent," department officials said in a release.

Of those surveyed, 16.4 percent of women said that had happened to them, while 3.1 percent of men said the same.

Deanna Ferrell, a violence and injury epidemiologist for the Utah Department of Health, said 2016 was "our first time in Utah even asking men this question," which she called a "huge step forward."

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University of Utah graduate Amy Joe Curtis spoke at a press conference in the Utah Capitol rotunda on March 5 following the tabling of a controversial bill aimed at addressing campus sexual assault.

“When I was a freshman in college I was a victim of rape myself, so I know what it’s like to be a college student and have to deal with that every day,” Curtis said.

Campus Sexual Violence Reporting, or HB254, would have amended state code to change protocol for postsecondary institutions responding to incidents of sexual assault. In response to multiple accounts of Brigham Young University using its honor code to punish victims of sexual assault, the bill would prohibit such action. The bill, proposed by state Rep. Kim Coleman, R-West Jordan, also would have criminalized retaliation against a sexual assault victim.

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SALT LAKE CITY — (KUTV) - On March 20, as a sexual assault scandal was exploding around former Missionary Training Center President Joseph Bishop, his son, and attorney Greg Bishop sent an email to 2News unsolicited.

In the email, he unspools a five-page dossier about the past of the woman who had accused his father of rape.

The email included the woman’s criminal record, alleged false allegations she’d made in the past, and jobs she’d lost.

It even included details about an incident that occurred when she was 17 years old. Bishop encouraged reporters to examine the woman’s past adding, “consider the source.”

In the last two days, 2News has obtained a letter that was written by David Jordan, a lawyer at the firm, Stoel Rives, acting on behalf of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

The document is a response to a letter from the woman’s attorney, Craig Vernon, requesting a settlement from the LDS Church.

The document includes everything we saw in Bishop’s email, plus a review of her ecclesiastical church record.

NEW: Lawyers for @LDSchurch accumulated a dossier on the woman who accused former MTC pres of rape. The attorney CC'd the son of the accuser, who, as the scandal was unfolding, emailed a truncated version to members of the media.

— Chris Jones (@jonesnews) March 31, 2018

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SALT LAKE CITY — Flashback: Imagine it's 1954. Charles and Shirley meet at a church dance, introduced by friends, where they sway to Dean Martin's "That's Amore." After several dates to the drive-in and school sporting events, they actually fall in “amore.”

Flash forward: It's 2018. Steven and Tara match on the dating app Tinder. After first meeting up to go snowshoeing, they soon become "inseparable." Eventually, they're an embodiment of #relationshipgoals, Instagram-style.

Love may be the same, but the way many people go about finding it has changed.

But with more and more people using online dating sites comes rising concerns about personal safety.

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SALT LAKE CITY, Utah (News4Utah) - A vulgar package elicits strong words from Turner Bitton, the Executive Director of the Utah Coalition Against Sexual Assault. "I don't care if you agree or disagree with the work that we do, there is no place for intimidation."

But that's exactly what UCASA employees say the package was supposed to do, intimidate. News4Utah's Kim Fischer explains what was in that box, and what happened when she went to find the sender.

The team at UCASA works every day to help victims of sexual violence. So when they got an unusual package, out of the blue, they knew exactly what they were dealing with.

"It actually angers me a lot because we spend a lot of time in this work talking about the trauma people experience by doing this work. And then to have somebody take advantage of that and attempt to instill fear in somebody it just infuriates me," Bitton said.

The box was addressed to one employee who we are not naming. Inside the box was a sex toy. A used sex toy.

"That’s not what Utah is about," Bitton said.

There was also a letter made out to that specific employee, saying the sender was her "valentine." the letter claimed the sexually charged item was supposed to help her relax.

"Unidentified packages like this are meant to send fear," Bitton said.

But there was one identifying marker, a name and address on the outside of the box. So I went to that address and knocked and knocked. While I heard someone inside, they never came to the door. So I drove back to the station and called the man's cell phone and left him a message.

"Hi this is Kim Fischer with News4Utah. I just came by your house a short time ago to talk to you about a mysterious package that looks to have come from you to an employee at UCASA."

I never got a response. The staff at UCASA also called police, but, "unfortunately it's a non-criminal matter, anyone can send a package to anyone as long as it's not dangerous," Bitton explained.

However, police say they have the incident on record. Bitton said he just wants people to know this kind of harassment is not ok. It’s not a joke.

"There’s a sense of responsibility that we have to have as a community and really say that violence and intimidation have no place in what would otherwise be a civil discourse," he said. Especially intimidation this vulgar.

If you are ever targeted like this police say do give them a call so they can at least take note of the situation. And if you need someone to talk to you can download the Safe UT App and talk or text with a counselor 24-7. Just click here.

March For Our Lives SLC Student Organizers Prepare for Saturday's Rally, Debut of Human by Tiana St. Clair, Plus Two Organizations Who Help Sexual Assault Survivors -- Wasatch Forensic Nurses and the Utah Coalition Against Sexual Assault

Guests:

• March For Our Lives SLC student organizers:

  • Natalie Reese, Orem HS

  • Brandon De Melo, Skyline HS

  • Wilhelmina Graff, West HS

  • March For Our Lives SLC takes place Saturday, March 24, 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Gather at West High at 11 a.m., march to the Utah State Capitol at 11:30 a.m., speeches there at noon.

• When an adult or teen is sexually assaulted, Wasatch Forensic Nurses, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, is ready to respond, providing care at 19 hospitals along Utah’s Wasatch Front 24/7 and free of cost to the patient. RadioActive talked with Executive Director Deborah Koons, Clinical Director Julie Melini, and Administrative Assistant McKell Eldredge.

  • WFN reported that a new mobile app to track the progress of rape kits through the forensic process is in beta testing and soon will be available to victims.

  • WFN's spring fundraiser and silent auction will be held Saturday, April 14, from 5:30-9:00 p.m. at SLC Marriot-University Park. CLICK HERE for tickets for a fun night in support of a serious cause.

• Turner Bitton, executive director of the Utah Coalition Against Sexual Assault (UCASA), reported on HB 254, which threatened the confidentiality of victims who work with advocates on college campuses. Bitton said it was the second year the bill was sponsored, and it will likely be back next year.

  • April is Sexual Assault Awareness month. For a full list of UCASA activities, including the launch of a statewide #MeToo town hall series, click here. 

  • Check out UCASA's mobile app, You Are a Survivor, for primary and secondary survivors. 

• Tiana St. Clair, an outdoor adventure guide and musician in southern Utah, shared her story and Human, a song about her experience as a survivor of sexual assault. 

RadioActive is a production of Listeners' Community Radio of Utah. Tonight's team included:

• Host/Executive Producer: Lara Jones
• Community Co-Host: Billy Palmer
• Associate Producer: Billy Palmer
• Volunteer: Tommy Sutter

As new accusations continue to be reported every day — across the world and here at Utah State University — leaders of an on-campus club have urged caution against jumping to conclusions regarding sexual assault.

During the fall 2017 semester, a politically conservative club distributed flyers on USU’s Logan campus advocating for people who, according to the flyer, were “falsely accused of sexual assault.”

Young Americans for Freedom, a USU Student Association-sanctioned club and a branch of a nationwide organization, promotes traditional values and free speech, said club president Taylor Cripe.

While Cripe acknowledged sexual assault as a major problem that deserves attention, she said it’s important to acknowledge that men’s lives are sometimes ruined by being falsely accused of sexual assault.

“That’s a serious crime to be falsely accused of,” Cripe said. “We think it’s important to see both sides of that — the women who have been abused, but also the men who have been falsely accused.”

Turner Bitton, the executive director of the Utah Coalition Against Sexual Assault, said this message may actually discourage victims from reporting.

“Every time a survivor sees something like ‘falsely accused’ or ‘liar,’” he said, “it puts an icy chill on our efforts to get folks to come forward who have been victimized by sexual assault.”

Bitton also expressed concern over the statistics cited on the YAF flyer. It cites data from an academic study claiming that 2 to 10 percent of sexual assault reports are false, and that more than 40 percent are unsubstantiated.

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SALT LAKE CITY — A bill which would have allowed universities to report sexual assault cases to police without the victim’s permission failed Monday amidst heavy opposition, including from BYU students and faculty.

HB254 was tabled Monday morning after the bill’s sponsor Rep. Kim Coleman, R-West Jordan, failed to make it to the hearing. Since the bill’s introduction, over 50 victim advocate groups including Utah Coalition Against Sexual Assault, RAIN, Safe Campus LLC and the National Women’s Law Center voiced their opposition.

The Utah Coalition Against Sexual Assault held a press conference following the hearing to address what is next.

BYU forensic nurse professor Julie Valentine opposed HB254. She has been instrumental in reforming BYU’s Title IX implementation and also serves on national committees developing best practice guidelines for eradicating sexual assault at universities.

“On the surface, House Bill 254 might seem like a good approach to addressing campus sexual violence, but it is not,” Valentine said. “Every victims’ rights organization in Utah and over 50 national campus and victims’ rights organization oppose HB254.” 

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