COLUMBIA, Mo. (KCTV) - A high-profile rape case at Cornell University is renewing attention to sexual assault laws nationwide, as Missouri lawmakers consider changes they say could better protect college students.

Annual security reports from the University of Missouri-Columbia, Missouri State University's West Plains campus and Saint Louis University show different patterns in reported sexual offenses from 2023 through 2025. The figures count Clery-reportable incidents in defined campus areas; they are not a measure of every assault experienced by students and are not directly comparable to campus prevalence surveys.

MU reported 26 rape, fondling, incest or statutory rape offenses in 2023, 17 in 2024 and 20 in 2025. Saint Louis University reported 20, 16 and 11, respectively. Missouri State's West Plains campus reported zero in those categories in each of the three years, while noting that some law enforcement agencies did not provide requested statistics.

Stalking counts also varied. MU reported 25 cases in 2023, 22 in 2024 and 15 in 2025. SLU reported 25, 18 and 18. West Plains reported none in the three-year period. MU and SLU count dating violence within their domestic violence totals under Missouri's definitions, so a zero in a separate  dating violence  row does not mean no dating violence was reported.

At MU, students who spoke with Gray Media's Missouri Capitol Bureau said they were aware of university education and resources about sexual assault but described speaking up as frightening.

In New York, where Cornell is located, there is a state law loophole. If a person got voluntarily drunk and sex was forced on them, prosecutors may not be able to charge the person. In Missouri, the law says even if a person was voluntarily drunk they can't consent and it could be considered rape. Even so, some state lawmakers say Missouri's laws on sexual assault are too weak.

 We need to be putting laws in place that protect our girls and our women from sexual assault and make sure that should it happen they're getting the care they need in a timely fashion,  said State Rep. Jo Doll.

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