Mark Muir is ending his 22-year career as police chief of Montana's town of Missoula, home of the University of Montana (UM), and claims to have left the department "in good shape."
According to the Huffington Post, UM and Muir's department was recently found by a federal investigation to have not properly responded to reports of sexual assault. The investigation concluded in May and the police were found to have not interviewed the suspect and victim in a timely manner.
Another allegation was that Muir told one of the sexual assault complainants most of such reports are false and that women make up such claims to cover for themselves.
"I never told her that," Muir told The Huffington Post, "[that was] a pretty outrageous statement."
Kerry Barrett, the complainant who spoke about her sexual assault at UM, said a Missoula police officer asked her in Sept. 2011 if she had a boyfriend.
"I said, 'No, but why does that matter?'" said Barrett. "He responded, 'Some girls cheat on their boyfriend and regret it and blame it on rape.'"
Since then, Muir has attempted to turn his department into one that actively follows through on sexual assault claims. Since Barrett's claims, he asked the U.S. Justice and Education Departments conduct investigations into the school and into his department. He has also saw to the formation of a civilian panel to review cases of sexual assault and, according to Muir, they have examined nine this week.
Missoula, described as a "liberal enclave in a red state," has a reputation for sexual assault, as well as drug trafficking and usage.
"We now can look at it and say, 'We get it,'" Muir said. "Women feel judged by society. Similarly, they also feel judged by the cops, the investigators. We're trying to distance ourselves from the societal biases that most of the people in the country have grown up with."
In Sept. 2011 Muir also tried to refute Barrett's claims that only six percent of rape claims are false. The police chief thought that figure was much higher and could be as many as one in every two.
Barrett, however, does not think this is a problem exclusive to Missoula and that more attention needs to be given to all campuses with underreported rapes. Several schools in many different areas of the country are under or have been under investigation for the same reason as UM was.
"Missoula has a problem, but so does every other college town in this country," Barrett said. "They're just unlucky enough to get the attention."