Woman attacked in SRJC office

A Santa Rosa Junior College employee was attacked in her office Tuesday morning in an attempted sexual assault, the college's police chief said.

After a violent struggle between the woman and man, the attacker ran and remained at large Tuesday, said SRJC District Police Chief Terry Stewart.

"It was a serious assault," Stewart said.

The victim, a theater arts employee in her 50s, suffered cuts and bruises on her face while fighting off her assailant in the Burbank Auditorium office.

She was taken by ambulance to Kaiser Hospital, where she was treated for her injuries and released Tuesday afternoon.

Classes were not in session Tuesday. But numerous staff members and students who were on campus said the attack had unnerved them.

"It was a big shock," said Kassi Hampton, a 20-year-old music student.

But she and her friend, 19-year-old psychology student Danielle Valverde, said they still feel safe on campus.

"It's going to make everyone a little wary," Valverde said. "It's a reminder to be aware of your surroundings. But this kind of stuff happens everywhere."

Valverde and Hampton were among the first students who were allowed back into Burbank Auditorium at 3:30 p.m. after police took down yellow crime scene tape that had been strung around the building to keep it closed.

Following the 10:45 a.m. attack, school officials issued a campus-wide alert notifying faculty and staff.

Stewart said the victim was working alone in her office to the rear of the auditorium when she heard a knock on the door.

"She opened the door and was immediately attacked by an unknown male in an attempt to sexually assault her," he said.

The office door does not open to the outside of the building, meaning the suspect had to have gone inside the auditorium. Stewart said that suggests the assailant might have had a knowledge of the area and the woman's location in the office.

"It is unusual that somebody would know she'd be back there working in a closed office," he said.

The woman, who was not identified, told police that her assailant ran after she fought back. She then ran to other employees near the front of the theater and they notified campus police.

Stewart said it took more than 30 minutes to search the auditorium, which is a maze of offices, a theater, catwalks and production rooms.

He said police are hoping to conduct a more thorough interview with the victim Wednesday.

"We want to give her time to get emotionally back together," Stewart said.

Such attacks are rare on the Mendocino Avenue campus.

The most recent one that Stewart could recall occurred in 1997 when a Santa Rosa man dragged a female student into a toilet stall and sexually assaulted her. The man, Charles Patrick Uerling, was sentenced to 21 years in prison.

The man involved in Tuesday's attack was described as a Latino adult with a stocky build and short black hair. He was about 5-foot-6 and wore a sleeveless white T-shirt, dark pants and black gloves.

"It's a tragedy," said SRJC President Robert Agrella, who also noted such a crime on campus is rare. "This may be the second or third time in my nearly 20 years," he said of the attack.

Agrella sent out an alert early Tuesday afternoon to staff, faculty and all campus groups on the college e-mail system warning of the attack. There is no e-mail system to reach all students at the college.

Students will hear about the attack from their teachers, police notices on campus, the media and campus organizations, he said.

Students were off Tuesday and Wednesday due to a staff work day and the Veteran's Day holiday.

"I must remind the college community of the importance of maintaining as safe a college community as we possibly can," Agrella wrote in the e-mail alert.

"As the district police continue to provide security services, I request that all SRJC employees and students use caution, including being aware of your surroundings in and around all campus facilities. I also urge everyone to be current in college safety policies, procedures, and services."

Crime scene technicians and officers from the Santa Rosa Police Department helped process evidence at the scene and in the investigation.