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VOLUME 69 ISSUE 6
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WEDNESDAY, OCT. 3, 2012
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CRIME
Assaults target college-aged women there were similarities in vehicle and attacker description. Some of the sexually assaulted women were Chico State students, Franssen said. All of the women attacked were alone, either walking home or waiting, and the majority were intoxicated. There are similarities between some of the attacks. Four involved black cars, and
recent assault Sept. 22. Most of the incidents happened in the student neighborhood of the south-campus area, according to a press release distributed by Chico police. Some of the incidents reported last week were linked with some that occured around this time last year, said Chico Police sergeant Scott Franssen. In some of the cases,
Katrina Cameron STAFF WRITER
A number of sexual assaults against college-aged women near campus have triggered an investigation by the Chico Police Department. The first attack occurred in August 2011 and they have continued, with the most
DESCRIPTION
DESCRIPTION
In all three pepper spray attacks, the suspect was described as white, in his 20s and about 6 feet tall
The Sept. 22, 2012 attack: Late 20s to early 30s, muscular, with short, dark hair
in two of the instances, the suspects identified themselves as police officers. There were multiple reports from last fall in which women were attached with pepper spray. The release listed and described 10 different attacks on college-aged women: • The most recent attack occurred Sept. 22 and was reported by a college-aged woman >> please see RAPES | A5
BY THE NUMBERS
DESCRIPTION
offenses on or near campus from 2009-2011
The two suspects disguised as police officers are described as follows:
10
White man in his 30s with blond hair, 6 feet tall, thin, with acne scars
6’0” 5’0”
Hispanic man in his late 20s with thick brown hair in a buzz cut. Tattoos on his neck.
4’0”
The Sept. 1, 2012 attack: white male, tall, dark hair Aug. 26, 2012 attack: One white man about 18, one Hispanic man about 18.
SUSPECTS AT LARGE All of the women assaulted were alone, either walking home or waiting for someone. The majority of them were intoxicated.
In three cases, a suspect used pepper spray to subdue the women
In one case, the suspects were wearing masks
In two of the cases, one or two suspects were disguised as police officers. In one instance, they were wearing dark blue uniforms with silver breast pocket buttons.
‘09 ‘10 ‘11 FORCIBLE SEX OFFENSES
0 2 0 ‘09 ‘10
I FOUR OF THE IN CCASES, THE WOMEN FFOUGHT AND EESCAPED THEIR ATTACKERS A
In four cases, the suspect contacted women from a newer black car.
‘11
NON-FORCIBLE SEX OFFENSES
7
THE ORION •INFOGRAPHIC BY LINDSAY SMITH
SOURCE • CHICO POLICE DEPARTMENT
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2
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‘09 ‘10 ‘11 AGGRAVATED ASSAULT SOURCE • CHICO STATE’S 2012 CLERY REPORT
Brett Olson’s toxicology report shows alcohol, cocaine Pedro Quintana STAFF WRITER
BRETT OLSON
The toxicology report for Cal Poly San Luis Obispo student Brett Olson released Tuesday revealed that he was intoxicated and had used cocaine near the time of his death. The report, released 23 days after Olson’s body was found in the Sacramento River, said that Olson died from asphyxiation due to drowning. His death
will be classified as accidental. Glenn County Sheriff Larry Jones drove to Fairfield at 2 p.m. Tuesday to give the results to Olson’s family at the Solano County Sheriff’s Office. Olson, 20, a Lafayette resident, was in Chico Sunday, Sept. 2 to celebrate Labor Day weekend with friends but did not return with his group after an afternoon of floating. Olson’s disappearance mobilized an extensive search and awareness campaign, with his family
and the Chico community reaching thousands of people on Facebook and Twitter. Between 25 and 40 police officers from various agencies searched for Olson when he went missing following the float, Jones said. Fishermen discovered Olson’s body at a washout of the Sacramento River at 10:20 a.m. Sept. 9 two miles south of Beer Can Beach. They waved down police, who brought the body to shore, as reported >> please see OLSON | A5
STUDENT FEES
Governor signs bill to guarantee student control over new fees Aubrey Crosby STAFF WRITER
THE ORION •PHOTOGRAPH BY TERCIUS BUFETE
Kitchen fire ignites student’s Hobart Street home ON SCENE Chico firefighters respond to a fire that caused about $30,000 in damage to a student’s house in the 1100 block of Hobart Street. Adam Mott, a 22-year-old business major, left a pan of olive oil on his lit stove while he went to a neighbor’s house, said Marie Flickert, a Chico fire inspector. A neighbor and Mott soon spotted the fire. The roof caved in, but there were no injuries.
Cancer deaths prompt Butte Hall fears County Sheriff/Coroner’s Office. Andrew Dick, 49, died of lung cancer May 16. Kilpatric, the administrative support coordinator for the political science department, and Dick, a sociology professor, worked on the top two floors of Butte Hall. The faculty and staff members in Butte Hall are generally concerned about air quality in the building following the cancer
Quinn Western ASST. NEWS EDITOR
The recent deaths of two faculty members have raised concerns among faculty and staff members about Butte Hall’s air quality. Tami Harder Kilpatric, 51, died of colon cancer Sept. 16, according to the Butte
1972
3,000
2nd
When construction of Butte Hall was completed
deaths, said Dean Fairbanks, professor and chair of the geography and planning department, in an email thread obtained by The Orion. “We are all intelligent people in this building, and we have to wonder about the air quality and any other links to these deaths,” Fairbanks said. >> please see BUTTE | A4
Butte Hall is the second tallest building on campus
INDEX
number of students the building is designed to hold
89,000 square feet of space SOURCE • CSUCHICO.EDU
Gov. Jerry Brown signed a bill Sept. 26 that protects California university students from paying mandatory fees without students’ consent. Senate Bill 960, penned by state Sen. Michael Rubio, D-Shafter, prevents university presidents from imposing mandatory fees without the approval of the MICHAEL RUBIO student body. Authored bill that The bill will also “prevent mandated fee increases be future instances of CSU cam- voted on by pus presidents disregarding students the will of the student body” by ensuring that funds collected by the fees are not redirected into projects they were not intended for, Rubio said in a Sept. 26 press release. The legislation passed unanimously, just two days after Chico State President Paul Zingg proposed a new “compact for student success” fee to fund on-campus academic programs chosen by the students and faculty. Other CSU campuses, including Cal State San Luis Obispo, Cal State East Bay, Cal State L.A. and Cal State San Bernardino, have implemented student success fees similar to the one Zingg proposed, said Mike Uhlenkamp, a representative for the CSU. CSU Chancellor Charles Reed signed a $240 student success fee for Cal State L.A. in March, according to a CSU executive >> please see BILL | A3
INSIDE
World News
A2
Sports
B1
Weather
A2
Directory
B3
Police Blotter
A4
Features
B4
Opinion
A6
Sex Column
B5
Sports
TODAY
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high low
full week A2 >>
The men’s and women’s lacrosse clubs have new coaches and players. Story B1
Features “The Fix,” the fall musical, opens tonight at 7:30 p.m. in Harlen Adams Theatre Story B6
Opinion A call for vigilance to prevent student-targeted assaults Editorial A6