An assailant sexually assaulted a student in a restroom at John Jay College of Criminal Justice earlier this month, the school notified students on Friday.
According to an email from the university titled “Clery Crime Alert/Timely Warning,” the assault occurred sometime during the week of Sept. 2 in a “restroom on the university campus.”
“Crime alerts are posted to inform John Jay College of situations that pose a potential threat to the safety and well-being of those who live, work, attend, or visit campus,” the email stated.
But the alert, required on campuses under the federal Clery Act, provided few details about the alleged crime, did not say whether the victim was male or female or the exact time it occurred.
The law requires universities to warn students about certain crimes.
The school's fall semester began on August 28th.
A university spokesman and the school's security director did not immediately return calls seeking additional information.
A police spokesman told The Post that the NYPD did not appear to have been informed of the incident.
Several students who were on campus Saturday were surprised by the warning and how quickly it was issued, students said.
“It's just crazy that something like this would happen, especially since this is a criminal justice school,” said sophomore Jaylen Hernandez, 19.
“It’s funny how I feel like they pay so much attention to, say, when an alumnus passes away,” Hernandez said. “I always get a notification on my phone from the school when an alumnus passes away… and I think, ‘Oh my God. [the sexual assault] This was happening and we didn't know about it.”
The 22-year-old student, who had earned his bachelor's degree from Pennsylvania State University and had just begun a master's program in forensic psychology at John Jay College, was shaken by the attack.
“I was shocked when I saw the email that it happened here, especially in the College of Criminal Justice, but unfortunately sexual assault can happen anywhere,” she said.
She called the university's warning this week a “belated response.”
“When I was in college, I knew I would get immediate notice,” she said.
“So when I found out it was from the first week of school, I was like, 'Why am I hearing about it now?'
The other students took the warning calmly.
“I wish it hadn't happened, but this is New York,” said Arnold, a 17-year-old freshman who asked not to be named.
“I hope the school fixes this and similar issues so that this never happens again,” he said. “It's kind of scary.”
The freshman said he hadn't seen the notice posted anywhere on campus.
Heidi Velazquez, a 19-year-old sophomore, said that after the notice went out on Friday, faculty in her program held mandatory meetings to encourage students to come forward if they had been victimized.
“If anything inappropriate or non-consensual happens, please come to us,” faculty members said, she said.
She was pleased that the school was informing students about reporting sexual assault, but was frustrated that the notification came a week after the alleged assault.
“It's such a shame,” she said. “If this is such a prestigious school, they should have said something straight away.”
