Update, 4 p.m. The district attorney’s office declined to file charges in the case. According to office spokeswoman Teresa Drenick, “Based upon a review of the evidence presented by the Berkeley Police Department, we have declined to file criminal charges.” Berkeleyside removed the student’s name, and several identifying details, in light of this new information.
Original story, 7 a.m. Authorities have arrested a 20-year-old UC Berkeley student on suspicion of rape in connection with a case from earlier this year reported to have taken place at a fraternity party near campus.
The Berkeley Police Department arrested the young man at 7 a.m. Thursday after serving a search warrant at his fraternity house at 2395 Piedmont Ave., at Channing Way, authorities said.
UCPD identifies that location as Phi Gamma Delta, a fraternity that is not officially recognized by the CalGreeks organization.
Sgt. Andrew Frankel, BPD spokesman, said the arrest was in connection with “an on-going sexual assault investigation.”
According to a statement released by UCPD on Feb. 22, the victim had attended a party at a fraternity house in the 2300 block of Piedmont three days earlier, on Friday, Feb. 19. The sexual assault took place between midnight and 12:45 a.m. Saturday in a room at the fraternity, which was not named.
According to the UCPD statement, “a report was made to a Campus Security Authority who is required under the Federal Clery Act to report it to the campus Clery Compliance Officer. UCPD is in turn required to alert our community of the crime.”
The Berkeley Police Department took up the investigation after the initial report came in.
The student was arrested Thursday morning on suspicion of rape “Where a person is prevented from resisting by any intoxicating or anesthetic substance, or any controlled substance, and this condition was known, or reasonably should have been known by the accused.”
He is being held at Berkeley Jail with a bail of $100,000 and is scheduled for arraignment Friday at 9 a.m. at the Wiley W. Manuel Courthouse in downtown Oakland.
According to the Daily Cal, Phi Gamma Delta is not recognized by the Interfraternity Council at UC Berkeley. It became unaffiliated in 2014.
UCPD also put out a separate report earlier this year that “two female students may have been drugged at the Phi Gamma Delta (Fiji) Fraternity” on Friday, Feb. 19. No other information was released in the Feb. 25 statement. It was unknown as of publication time how this report related to the earlier statement about the sexual assault reported in the hours that followed.
According to CrimeMapping.com, which compiles public safety data in Berkeley, there have been 27 sexual assaults around the UC Berkeley campus since Jan. 1. Of the BPD incidents, there have been 11 felonies and nine misdemeanors. UCPD incidents are listed online as “sex crimes,” without any indication of severity.
UCPD has previously released safety tips to help limit the possibility of sexual assault:
- Rape and sexual assault are never the fault of the survivor. It is the behavior of the perpetrator that is wrong.
- Don’t be afraid to intervene if you see a friend leaving a party with a stranger.
- 80% of sexual assault and rapes are perpetrated by someone known to the survivor, and on college campuses 90% of survivors know their attacker.
- Get verbal consent from your partner. Consent at its most basic level means everyone involved wants to participate. Consent cannot be given:
- If someone is under the influence of alcohol or other drugs
- If someone is passed out, unconscious, asleep, or coming in or out of consciousness
- Under direct or implied threat of bodily harm or other forms of coercion
- If any party is under 18 years of age
- If someone has a physical, developmental or mental disability that impairs their ability to understand the act
Sexual assault survivors can find additional resources online through organizations like RAINN.
Related:
Berkeleyside blotter: Crime in Berkeley, Feb. 18-24 (03.10.16)
Berkeleyside blotter: Crime in Berkeley, Feb. 11-17 (03.01.16)
Student who fell from frat house in serious condition (02.27.12)
Do you rely on Berkeleyside for your local news? You can support independent local journalism by becoming a Berkeleyside member. You can choose either a monthly payment or a one-time donation.
