Marquette to undergo federal review of how sexual assaults are reported

Marquette University is now the focus of a federal investigation into how they report sexual assaults. It's part of the so-called Cleary Act, which is a federal act requiring universities to publish and share certain crime statistics and provide safety alerts. Now, the university is under review, to make sure they're following the rules. This comes on the hells of a change in how the school handles the reporting of sexual assaults, after two separate cases against athletes at the school.

In October of last year, a woman accused four Marquette basketball players of sexually assaulting her in Marquette's Humphrey Hall. The university held a conduct hearing, but at the woman's request, did not contact police. That woman changed her mind this past spring, and reported the incident to police, but prosecutors said too much time had passed to conduct a proper investigation, and no criminal charges were filed.

Criticism of how the university handles sexual assaults resulted, and in June, a review of the incident led to a policy change. In a letter, Marquette said any report of sexual assault would be referred to Milwaukee police, but student victims would have the choice whether to talk with police.

Now, a federal review is underway, investigating how Marquette reports crimes. The process is essentially an audit of crime logs, and security reports. If findings indicate Marquette did not follow federal rules, it could mean a fine for the university.