Police in Monroe County are still searching for a suspect one day after a female student said she was sexually assaulted on the campus of East Stroudsburg University.
ESU professor Jane Huffman said she learned about an alleged attack on campus on the web. "I was working in the DNA lab and using the computer and the email came across in the morning," said Huffman.
The email was part of a campus-wide safety alert. It let students and faculty know that a 22-year-old female student had apparently been sexually assaulted at knife point in a student parking lot in broad daylight and that the suspect was still on the run.
"I contacted our IT department, let them know the situation we had and the message I was creating. I sent that information to them for them to post on our web page, sent out in a mass email communication and to use our e2 campus text alert system," said ESU University Police Chief Robin Olson.
It was the first time campus police had ever sent out a safety alert through text. Overall, Chief Olson felt the plan worked well. "We always look at every situation as an opportunity to go back and evaluate what things we did well, what things we we might do better in the future," said Olson. "We have a good system set up."
Police said the investigation into the alleged rape continues, including reviewing some surveillance video from some campus security cameras that might help investigators catch the suspect.
For now incoming freshman William Leiphart said he feels more secure having an alert system in place in case something like the apparent attack happens again. "Yeah it does because it gives us the information to look out for," said Leiphart.
The investigation has been turned over to state police.
ESU professor Jane Huffman said she learned about an alleged attack on campus on the web. "I was working in the DNA lab and using the computer and the email came across in the morning," said Huffman.
The email was part of a campus-wide safety alert. It let students and faculty know that a 22-year-old female student had apparently been sexually assaulted at knife point in a student parking lot in broad daylight and that the suspect was still on the run.
"I contacted our IT department, let them know the situation we had and the message I was creating. I sent that information to them for them to post on our web page, sent out in a mass email communication and to use our e2 campus text alert system," said ESU University Police Chief Robin Olson.
It was the first time campus police had ever sent out a safety alert through text. Overall, Chief Olson felt the plan worked well. "We always look at every situation as an opportunity to go back and evaluate what things we did well, what things we we might do better in the future," said Olson. "We have a good system set up."
Police said the investigation into the alleged rape continues, including reviewing some surveillance video from some campus security cameras that might help investigators catch the suspect.
For now incoming freshman William Leiphart said he feels more secure having an alert system in place in case something like the apparent attack happens again. "Yeah it does because it gives us the information to look out for," said Leiphart.
The investigation has been turned over to state police.
