LAWYER: Why The Lower Standard Of Evidence In College Sex Assault Cases Is Dangerous
In my 13 years at the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education, I had never heard of any college that operated differently until 2011, when the Office for Civil Rights decided that accusers in campus cases must be able to appeal even when the accused was found not to have committed the offense. The second change, was the requirement that colleges “must use a preponderance of the evidence standard”… Most of the time, neither party to the hearings has a right to active participation of counsel. Cross-examination is limited or even forbidden. There’s no guarantee that all the evidence will be shared with both parties — even exculpatory evidence — the rules of evidence don’t apply, with hearsay and other irrelevant “evidence” regularly considered. Colleges decide for themselves who will preside over campus hearings and who will serve as jurors. .The parties are usually not placed under oath, and consequences for lying are generally nonexistent. Colleges frequently don’t even record the hearing or explain why they came to their decision…
washingtonpost.com By Robert Shibley
