FORMER BAYLOR Professor Sues University, Claims Anti-Male Bias
A former Baylor University economics professor is suing the university, accusing officials there of mishandling sexual misconduct claims against him. The professor, who is identified in court documents as John Doe, resigned from the university last year amid an investigation into the professor’s relationship with a student. In the lawsuit, the professor acknowledges he had a sexual relationship with an undergraduate, but says officials were overly zealous in their handling of his case, driven by the recent sexual assault scandal at the Baptist university.
Lawyers for the professor filed the lawsuit last month in federal court in Waco. In court documents, the professor acknowledges he had a sexual relationship with the student, and claims the relationship was consensual. Court documents don’t state whether the student was enrolled in any class the professor taught or was under his supervision.
According to court documents, the professor and the student went on three dates and “engaged in one consensual sexual interaction” between November 2017 and January 2018. The relationship ended when the professor told the student he was looking for a long-term partner for marriage..The two resumed their relationship in April, and took a vacation together in May. During that vacation, the professor ended the relationship after he caught the student lying to him. The student had recently been evicted from her previous home, so the professor let her stay with him for a few days until her new lease began. In early June, the professor told the student again that he wanted to end their relationship.
After their relationship ended, the student contacted Baylor’s Title IX office, which handles sexual assault complaints. The professor claims the student made false allegations about their relationship, and the university’s Title IX coordinator encouraged her to file an official complaint. The professor contends that university officials showed anti-male bias before and during the investigation.
dallasobserver-S. Allen
