KJZZ is a service of Rio Salado College,
and Maricopa Community Colleges

Copyright © 2025 KJZZ/Rio Salado College/MCCCD
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

UofA Sees Increase In Sexual Assault Cases

In 2013, the number of forcible sexual assaults at the University of Arizona was up, according to a university report. The study found that in 2011 there were four assaults, by 2012 there were 19 assaults and last year there were 28.

Brian Seastone is the Chief of Police at the University of Arizona. He said one reason for the rise is that more students are reporting these crimes. That's a good thing, but the other reason is less encouraging.

"These are not stranger sexual assaults, these are acquaintances," Seastone said. "I don’t want to say date rapes, but they’re acquaintances where they know the other individual and alcohol is a key factor in all of these by either one or both parties."

Both Arizona State University and Northern Arizona University saw a decrease in sexual assaults in the last year. 

KJZZ senior field correspondent Kathy Ritchie has 20 years of experience reporting and writing stories for national and local media outlets — nearly a decade of it has been spent in public media.