Sexual Assault Crime Stats Spiked In San Jose: SCC D.A.

SAN JOSE, CA — Sexual assaults rose slightly last year in Santa Clara County but spiked in San Jose, the most populous city, according to a 23-page report released Friday by the District Attorney’s Office.

San Jose witnessed an increased from 571 reported rapes in 2017 to 615 — an almost 10 percent rise.

Sexual assaults are often under-reported. But then there came the MeToo Movement in which women in great numbers stood up to be counted as being victimized sexually at some point in their lives. Some experienced harassment, others assault.

“These statistics are an invaluable tool in our efforts to prevent sexual assault and other violent
crimes,” District Attorney Jeff Rosen said. “We are ever hopeful that more survivors will come
forward to let their powerful voices be heard and to help us protect our community.’’

Notable in last year's stats is that 2017 was the year a new definition took effect that widely broadened the types of cases counted. Some of the increase may be caused by survivors coming forward, inspired by changes in societal attitudes and increased attention to sexual assaults.

Several trends were identified and appear to have continued – including a spike in juvenile and gun crimes. The report documents law enforcement officials’ responses to the uptick including energized efforts to enforce existing weapons laws and bolstering ballistics-analysis systems.

The District Attorney's report seems to coincide with the latest presentation provided last month by the Children, Seniors and Family Committee to county Supervisor Cindy Chavez that dictates sex crimes affect one in four women and one in seven men. A startling statistic out of the Intersectionality of Sexual Assault, Domestic Violence & Human Trafficking report shows that 74 percent of the victims experiencing the offenses knew their assailant. The number climbs to 80 percent among juveniles.

More on the report can be found here.

The increase in San Jose rapes seemed to prompt more questions than answers for the YWCA Silicon Valley Chief Executive Officer Tanis Crosby.

"I sincerely hope the increase in reporting is because the #MeToo movement is showing survivors that we’re not alone, and that you will be believed," she told Patch. "(But) I do think we’ve got to be measuring some additional data – it’s not just the number of reports to law enforcement. And in addition to the increase in reporting to law enforcement, there’s been a huge spike in demand for service. We need to ensure sexual assault survivors have the services they need and deserve for healing and justice."

Crosby pondered:

• How long did the survivor wait for a medical exam?
• How long did it take for the rape kit to be tested?
• Did they get the therapy and counseling they needed?
• Was there housing support?

Santa Clara County is the largest county in Northern California, spanning from Palo Alto in the north to Gilroy in the South. The county seat is in San Jose, the country’s 10th most populous city, and the third largest in California. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county’s estimated 2017 population is 1,911,226 residents. It is the sixth largest county in California.