Jackie is “a serial liar who invented” her account of being raped. There is no evidence whatsoever that the story that Jackie told her friends, or the very different story she told Rolling Stone, actually transpired. Instead, it appears that Jackie fabricated her perpetrator and the details of the alleged assault.” washingtonpost.com By T. Rees Shapiro
YAL President Dominick DiCesare takes issue with the preponderance of evidence standard used in university courts.“Essentially, when we say preponderance of evidence is enough, we’re equivalating rape cases with a common civil case.” UCSB’s judicial process undermines the due process…
thebottomline.ucsb By Kelsey Knorp
In a rebuke to a feminist idea that has migrated from college campuses to mainstream culture, an influential legal group overwhelmingly rejected a provision that would have endorsed an “affirmative consent” standard for the purpose of defining sexual assault…“Affirmative consent sounds wonderful in theory; in reality, it’s a nightmare because it’s impractical, and there’s no way for an accused person to prove his innocence”
washingtontimes.com By Bradford Richardson
In 2011, the Education Department’s civil rights office sent “dear colleague” letters to schools directing them to convict accused persons on a mere “preponderance” of evidence rather than “clear and convincing” evidence. Schools were instructed to not allow accused students to cross-examine their accusers, but to allow accusers to appeal not-guilty verdicts, a form of double jeopardy.
washingtonpost.com By George Will
A motion filed by the student, Wolfgang Ballinger, seeks a temporary suspension of Cornell’s ongoing internal investigation. The suit argues that Cornell’s administrative policies have violated Ballinger’s due process rights by denying him the chance to have a fair hearing because “it does not provide the accused student a fair and reasonable opportunity to defend himself.” A judge granted Ballinger’s request.
people.com By Chris Harris
OCR has brazenly nullified the Supreme Court definition of campus sexual harassment. These unlawful actions have led to pervasive and severe infringements of free speech rights and due process protections at colleges and universities across the country…The professors make several due-process recommendations. Read the letter. Law Professor Open Letter
thecollegefix.com By Greg Piper
Sex, especially between college students, is messy and confusing. The notion currently in vogue that students must give explicit consent at every step of the way may be great in theory, but that’s just not how people behave…courts may be starting to realize that they have a role to play in making sure that schools treat everyone fairly, both the accusers and the accused.
latimes.com By Justin Dillon and Matt Kaiser
Where is the voice of sanity, raising the countervailing concerns that these campus adjudications are accomplished by the deprivation of basic due process, the pre-determination of guilt by “investigators” for whom no allegation of rape falls short? Surely NPR, being a legitimate source of news, would present the legitimate arguments in opposition, right? This is where the coup de grace happens…it appears that colleges will be notating students transcripts with the Scarlet Letter, their internal version of the campus sex offender registry, without any outside scrutiny. simplejustice.us
Related Did slanted NPR story lead to illegal DoED sexual harassment rules
Legislators in Utah are considering a bill that would allow students involved in campus sexual assault hearings the right to an attorney…the bill could be a big win for accused students in Utah, who have had their due process rights eviscerated by the federal government.
washingtonexaminer.com By Ashe Schow
If you’re a college student in Connecticut and want to have consensual sex, you might want to leave the state to do it, you have to say ‘yes’ every 10 minutes” to avoid sexual assault charges. Connecticut’s affirmative-consent law, HB 5376, may violate due process by excluding critical evidence of consent. libertyunyielding.com By Hans Bader
Senator Joe Markley voted against CT bill, citing its meddling in college students’ consensual sex lives. Senator Markley explains his NO vote