Doug Mataconis · · 9 comments

Over at Above The Law, I found this rather odd report out of Canada:

“Don’t dress like a slut.”

That’s the safety tip for how women can avoid a sexual assault, reportedly offered by a Toronto police officer speaking at a campus safety information session at Osgoode Hall Law School last month. At the January 24 session, university security and two male officers from the Toronto Police Service gave advice for how to stay safe on campus.

One of the safety tips was for women not to dress like ‘sluts.’ He said something like, ‘I’ve been told I shouldn’t say this,’ and then he uttered the words,” Ronda Bessner, Osgoode assistant dean of the Juris Doctor Program, told York University’s newspaper the Excalibur.

“I was shocked and appalled.” Fetter the meeting, she called the police service to demand an apology and followed up with a letter.

According to a spokesperson for the Police Service, the officer involved will apologize and has been disciplined, although because it was handled internally the punishment was not made public. “The comments were entirely inappropriate and should not have been made,” said Mark Pugash, the director of communications.