About a week and a half ago, a harrowing incident occurred right on the doorstep of Quinnipiac University. A Quinnipiac student told the Hamden Police Department that she was sexually assaulted on November 9. The incident occurred on the intersections of Mount Carmel Ave and New Road.
The student told police that the incident occurred as she was walking along the road around 11 p.m., when two white males in their 20s asked if she wanted a ride. She said that upon entering the vehicle, one of the males sexually assaulted her.
Quinnipiac’s Chief of Public Safety, Edgar Rodriguez, issued a detailed statement last week to the Quinnipiac student body on the issue that described some of the details.
Edgar Rodriguez sent this email to the Quinnipiac University community
Despite the incident, Quinnipiac students don’t seem too concerned about their safety levels when on or around campus.
“I feel like this area is pretty safe,” QU student Kyle Carbutt said. “But I’m sure it’s safer to live on campus.”
“You’ve got security gates, and… well, it’s a campus,” Carbutt added with a chuckle.
Other students seemed perplexed by the victim’s decision to get in the car in the first place.
“I was a little shocked,” student Caroline King said. “I also thought it was very interesting that she got into a stranger’s car to begin with.”
Though the assault is a serious issue, it’s not the only trouble that the Hamden area has seen recently, as there was a shooting in Hamden the following Monday.
Carbutt, though, still believes that the area is safe to live in.
“I know Hamden is a big town,” Carbutt said. “But I feel like our area – the Quinnipiac area – is pretty tight and pretty safe, I would say.”