Early Sunday morning, a 19-year-old Penn State student was raped on the 200 block of South Garner Street, the State College Police Department said.

On Monday, police had no new information about the incident. They said the department has an abundance of cases, and they did not know when new information would be available.

We support the police in their efforts, and we know that there are many incidents that the department must deal with.

However, this violent crime should be a high priority when it comes to investigations. Rape is a first-degree felony. We don't want Penn State and downtown to be plagued by predators who commit stranger rapes, a serious problem that some universities, sadly, have had to deal with in recent years.

The longer the community waits to catch the perpetrators of this crime, the greater the safety risk.

Police said the rape occurred between 4 and 4:40 a.m. The area of the attack was only two blocks from campus and adjacent to a segment of Beaver Avenue with a high student population. The suspects were described as three white men between 20 and 25 years old. One wore a white T-shirt, and another wore a blue sweater.

If you were out that morning and you saw anything, no matter how insignificant you think it might be, please call State College police at 234-7150. With the community's help, we hope police can solve this case, despite their heavy workload.

Even if you have no information about the crime, you can still fight against rape in the community by marking your calendar.

Take Back the Night will be on Wednesday. There, you can join community members in uniting against sexual assault and other forms of violence against women. Although this march has taken place every year, it holds special significance now, when a group of three alleged rapists might be roaming freely through the community.

By taking to the streets in a group, you can send a message that this crime is something that deserves high priority. Most importantly, you will express to those who committed this crime that it will not be tolerated in your community.