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LOYOLAN
EST. 1921
page 7 Page 17
VOLUME 95 I ISSUE 5
in reported sexual assault
Left: Caroline Burt | Loyolan Right: via Department of Public Safety
Photos of the suspect in the alleged Sept. 18 sexual assault (seen on right) were released by the Department of Public Safety on Friday, Sept. 23. The alleged sexual assault occurred
in the William H. Hannon Library (seen on left) after Fallapalooza.
Suspect
identified
The suspect in the reported
on-campus sexual assault
has been identified.
Kellie Chudzinski
News Editor
@LALoyolan
The Department of Public Safety (DPS)
has publicly identified a suspect in the
reported sexual assault that allegedly
took place Sunday, Sept. 18 after LMU’s
annual Fallapalooza concert.
While Chief of Public Safety Hampton
Cantrell would not confirm the identity
of the suspect, multiple Loyolan sources
have confirmed that he is Alex C. Berry,
a non- student. According to a Facebook
page belonging to Alex Berry, he attended
the University of Leeds and currently
lives in Texas. Berry has been banned
from campus and the Los Angeles Police
Department (LAPD) is continuing the
investigation.
“This case, we have really handed the
baton, if you will, to the LAPD so they have
a criminal investigation,” Cantrell said.
“We don’t want to say or do anything that
may compromise what they are trying to
do for the investigation.”
DPS released surveillance images of a
person of interest in the case on Friday,
Sept. 23, and investigators said they
received a nearly immediate response
from students. As of press time, no arrest
had been made by the LAPD, which is still
investigating in cooperation with DPS.
The person of interest was later upgraded
to a suspect after conferring with the
victim and witnesses.
“We are really thanking students who
may have seen things, who knew who he
was or thought they knew who he was and
provided that information to us,” Cantrell
said. “It said a lot about our community,
in that it really does take a community to
create a safe environment.”
Lane Bove, senior vice president of
Student Affairs, commended students on
their efforts in identifying the suspect.
“We have been committed to educating
our students on the importance of
stepping up and stepping in for others.
In this instance, the LMU student body
did exactly that,” Bove said. “They came
forward with information immediately,
and by doing so, made a statement that
they will not tolerate misconduct on their
campus.”
The Loyolan reached out to the LAPD
Robbery- Homicide Division, which
investigates sexual assaults, on Monday,
Sept . 26 , and to the LAPD Media Relations
Section on Tuesday, Sept. 27. As of press
time, no responses were received.
It took approximately five days to
release photos of the then person of
interest. According to Cantrell, DPS
needed to accurately identify the person
of interest’s connection to the University
and waited to avoid accidentally
stigmatizing a falsely identified person of
interest.
After the sexual assault was reported,
DPS increased its campus patrols which
will continue until further notice is given.
Dean of the Library Kristine R.
Brancolini sent out a community email on
Sept. 26, addressing safety concerns after
the reported sexual assault.
“We remain committed to fostering
an open and welcoming space where
students are free to explore and
collaborate on their intellectual pursuits
and creative interests,” Brancolini said.
“As we evaluate and improve the physical
security of our facility, we seek to strike a
balance between security and intellectual
discoverability.”
The investigation is still ongoing.
“This is a criminal investigation.
[...] [My] urge for our community, just
patience as this unfolds and being
respectful of what our victim has gone
through,” Cantrell said.
Day of
‘bridged
Students gather tocuscuss the
importance of dialogue and the
presence of race on campus.
Julia Campion
Asst. News Editor
@LALoyolan
Ethnic and Intercultural Services (EIS)
provided students with a Day of Dialogue
dedicated to promoting the importance of
the ethnicities and racial backgrounds that
make up the LMU campus and the country
by engaging in conversation about race on
Thursday, Sept. 22.
There were two events during the Day of
Dialogue; The National Dialogue on Race,
led by campus intercultural facilitators,
and To Serve and Protect, a conversation
between members of the Los Angeles Police
Department (LAPD) and students. The
Dialogue
a gap’
National Dialogue on Race was held inside
of St. Robert’s Auditorium. Seating on both
sides that faced inward in an almost circular
formation, allowed students to face each
other.
The dialogue began with participants
coming up with a universal definition of race
andracism. The definitionfor race was: “The
social construct that categorizes people
unequally, and generalizes them through skin
color, culture and ethnicity.” The definition
for racism was: “Using race to promote
biased and cultural misunderstandings, with
attitude.”
Raymond Duronslet, a sophomore
intercultural facilitator and political science
major, thought the event encouraged mutual
understanding between event participants.
“I think this bridged a gap on the lack
of empathy on campus. It allowed a lot of
students and faculty to gain knowledge and
a little bit more personal acceptance on how
See Dialogue | Page 5
Lauren Holmes | Loyolan
Duringthe first event of the Day of Dialogue, the National Dialogue on Race, held by Ethnic
and Intercultural Services, student leaders opened up the discussion on race to the group.
