Have you ever left your drink with an acquaintance while at a party? Have you ever accepted a drink from someone and you didn’t know what was in it? It’s sad and frustrating that anyone needs to worry about either issue, but these situations could potentially lead to a violent crime that no one deserves to experience — sexual assault.
Every student at the University has the right to pursue his or her academic goals without fear, intimidation or violence, yet sexual violence exists on this and other campuses. While it should always be the survivor’s decision whether to report an assault, reporting can help individuals regain a sense of personal power and connect them to critical resources including health professionals, counseling services and community agencies. Reporting to the police does not mean one must proceed with prosecution, but it can improve the chances of bringing a perpetrator to justice. University survivors can also choose to complete an anonymous report.
The Alliance for Sexual Assault Prevention (ASAP) composed of students, staff and faculty, educates and develops programs and policies to prevent sexual assault at the University. The topic of date rape drugs — rohypnol, ketamine and GHB — is frequently raised at meetings. These drugs are receiving media attention as tasteless, odorless substances that can be slipped into another person’s beverage and used to facilitate rape.
According to the University Health Center and Eugene’s Oregon Medical Labs (OML), people often delay testing for these drugs. For proper detection, urine tests must be performed within 12-36 hours, and ideally within the first 12 hours, after ingesting the drug.
It is difficult to predict the effects of any of these drugs because of numerous variables (type of drug, how much of the drug has been ingested, weight, metabolism, gender, whether the drug has been mixed with alcohol or other drugs, etc.). Symptoms of ingesting these drugs may include disorientation, intoxication, memory loss, drowsiness or waking up hung over. Survivors are never responsible for a sexual assault — even if they have been drinking at the time of the assault. If the survivor has had alcohol, symptoms are amplified beyond the typical response from the amount of alcohol consumed.
If you believe you have been slipped a date rape drug, get to a safe place. Call Sexual Assault Support Services (SASS), 911, or go to the hospital emergency room. Preserve any physical evidence and request the hospital take a urine sample for date rape drugs. If you want to go forward with criminal prosecution, forensic evidence needs to be collected at the hospital. SASS has advocates who can accompany survivors during this time and in the months ahead. In addition, the University Health Center can provide other services at a lower cost to the survivor including pregnancy testing, emergency contraception, drug testing, and medical assistance.