Huge bearing on other campus sexual assault cases.
By Raif Karerat
WASHINGTON, DC: In a verdict that some legal experts believe may have a broad national impact, a judge found that UC San Diego failed to give a fair trial to a male student it found responsible for sexual misconduct.
“It could have tremendous persuasive influence on other courts,” said Amy Wax, a University of Pennsylvania law professor who, along with 15 colleagues, has raised concerns about the rights of accused students in campus sexual assault cases, according to the Los Angeles Times.
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In what is believed to be the first ever ruling against the University of California system in a sexual misconduct case, San Diego County Superior Court Judge Joel M. Pressman found there was insufficient evidence to support charges that the student, identified only as John Doe, had forced a classmate to engage in sexual activity against her will in February 2014.
The students referred to as John Doe and Jane Roe had a number of sexual encounters in early 2014 when they were both undergraduates at the University of California at San Diego, reported the Washington Post. Some of the dalliances were consensual, while some allegedly were not. In June, Roe complained about Doe to the university, alleging three instances of sexual misconduct.
Elena Acevedo Dalcourt, UC San Diego’s campus complaint resolution officer, found insufficient evidence for two of the charges but decided the third allegation of “digital penetration without consent” was valid, according to the L.A. Times.
After a hearing in December, Doe was initially suspended for one quarter. When he appealed, his suspension was elongated to one year, which would have required Doe to reapply to the university were it not for the recent verdict.
“While the Court respects the university’s determination to address sexual abuse and violence on its campus … the hearing against petitioner was unfair,” Pressman wrote.
Per the L.A. Times:
In an opinion issued Friday, Pressman said the university failed to hold a fair trial because the official who headed the misconduct hearing asked Roe only nine of 32 questions submitted by Doe. Officials also improperly allowed Dalcourt’s findings to be used in the hearing without allowing Doe to confront the complaint officer, who did not attend. Nor was Doe given access to any statements by 14 witnesses or Roe’s own interview statements.
Pressman also found the university “abused its discretion” in increasing sanctions against Doe after he appealed without explaining why.
In a statement Monday, UC San Diego said officials were “continuing to evaluate the decision, including whether to appeal,” and had no further comment.
1 Comment
What was an ongoing physical relationship becomes a subject for the courts based on a single digital penetration. I need more facts than the article presents. But I remain skeptical. And I will, regardless of the barrage this response may generate.