Feds investigating U-M's response to '09 sex assault allegations

[alp227]

Source: Detroit News

The U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights is investigating whether the University of Michigan failed to promptly respond to an alleged 2009 rape of a student involving a football player, The Detroit News has learned.

The investigation is prompted by two complaints, including one filed last year by Doug Smith, a former U-M pathologist who has been among the loudest voices demanding that the university investigate the alleged rape. Former kicker Brendan Gibbons was arrested in the case but not charged.

Notice of the federal inquiry comes as a demonstration will be held on campus Tuesday by students upset by the administration’s handling of sexual violence cases.

U-M officials said they stand behind their actions.


Read more: http://www.detroitnews.com/article/20140225/SCHOOLS/302250059/Feds-investigating-U-M-s-response-09-sex-assault-allegations

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More coverage: Ann Arbor News, ESPN, Detroit Free Press

This is huge, if this issue was bad enough...and this is arguably worse than the Michigan basketball scandal of the '90s...that the FEDS had to get involved. UM is gonna find itself in another Jerry Sandusky type scandal, for its two-faced treatment of a potentially dangerous student: keeping him in plain sight playing on its football team and discarding him once his "worth" to the university was over.

Timeline of the Gibbons case:
Nov. 22, 2009: AnnArbor.com reports that an unnamed 18-year-old Michigan football player was arrested on sexual assault charges.

Jan. 12, 2010: The same outlet reports: "Ann Arbor police have closed an investigation against a Michigan football player accused of sexual assault...because the accuser didn't want to pursue the case."

Jan. 2011: Michigan hires Brady Hoke to succeed Rich Rodriguez as football head coach.

Jan. 3, 2012: Michigan finishes an 11-2 season with a victory in the Sugar Bowl over Virginia Tech. Gibbons kicks the winning field goal in OT.

Aug. 8, 2013: The Washtenaw Watchdogs blog outs the arrested player as placekicker Brendan Gibbons, who redshirted his 2009 season then played starting in 2010. The blog accuses fellow football player Taylor Lewan of intimidating Gibbons's victim, but it's been the victim learned about the threats via hearsay since the campus police merely issued a warning to Lewan. By now, Gibbons has earned his bachelor's degree in general studies from UM's College of Literature, Science and the Arts. Gibbons begins coursework in a Master's in Social Work degree.

Dec. 20, 2013: Gibbons is "permanently separated" from the university, according to a letter
obtained by UM student newspaper Michigan Daily on Jan. 28, 2014. The article also reports: "Revised University policies regarding sexual misconduct may have forced officials to internally review or re-review the allegations. The updated policies, which have been in effect since 2011, state that any allegation of sexual misconduct received by the University must be investigated." In other words, even if Gibbons's victim did not actively bring up the issue with administrators, administrators could pursue actions based on any allegation of misconduct against the victim.

Dec. 23, 2013, three days after Gibbons was expelled, Hoke claimed that Gibbons did not travel with the team to the bowl game, due to "family issues".

Dec. 26, 2013: A reporter ChatSports.com, citing anonymous sources, writes: "I’ve heard two different takes on the Gibbons situation – one is that he’s in legal trouble. The other is that he “severely broke team rules and is no longer associated with the Michigan football program.” Same thing? Maybe, but no details are concrete enough to put out there. He’s off the team, and it isn’t for family reasons."

Jan. 24, 2014: Univ. of Michigan regents elect Mark Schlissel as the next university president to succeed Mary Sue Coleman, who served since 2002.

Feb. 3, 2014: Within a week of the Michigan Daily's expose of Gibbons's expulsion, coach Hoke states: "Michigan Athletics has no influence over any part of a review of a potential violation of the University student code of conduct...In general, while we may be aware of an ongoing proceeding, we always strive to balance transparency with privacy. Our usual approach is not to issue discipline related to a student's standing on the team before the University's process has run its course and the outcome has been determined. We always respect the rights and confidentiality of the process and the parties involved. One way we do that is by not discussing the details of student disciplinary matters." Around this time, Nick Baumgartner writes for MLive.com asking what Hoke knew and when about Gibbons.

I used to live in Ann Arbor as a kid. That's why I've been cheering for Michigan football and basketball. But this...maybe I'd look better as a Michigan State fan.

If the feds find any evidence of serious wrongdoing, expect the NCAA to step in with a Penn State type punishment for Michigan, basically:
- Vacating every winning game where Gibbons played from the books. (Vacating means deleting the game from school records as opposed to forfeiting where a win is retroactively changed to a loss.) Which would make Michigan's new 2010 record 4-5 (since Gibbons played in 3 wins in a 7-5 season), 2011 0-2 (since Gibbons played in all 13 games), 2012 0-4 (Gibbons played all 12 games in an 8-4 season), and 2013 0-6 (since Gibbons played only the first 12 games of a 7-6 season);
- Postseason ban for at least two years;
- Reduced scholarships;
- And Hoke could resign over his handling of this case.

[sinkingfeeling]

1. Why aren't the feds investigating Florida State's Jameis Winston's

alleged sexual battery?

[alp227]

3. In Michigan's case somebody filed a Title IX complaint.

Don't know if Jameis Winston's victim wants to do that, given the victim tried but failed to get a prosecution of Winston.

[sinkingfeeling]

4. Back in January she was stating she was filing a lawsuit. Did that happen?

[alp227]

5. they working on it

http://www.sportingnews.com/ncaa-football/story/2014-02-15/jameis-winston-rape-allegations-florida-state-title-ix-sexual-assault-john-clune-baine-kerr

[lark]

7. Real reason - he's a big star

Alleged reason, she consented. Yet within minutes of leaving his apt., she went straight to the hospital and reported that she was raped. Doesn't sound very consensual to me. I am so sick of this country tolerating rape by football players and blaming and harassing the victims.

ABSOLUTELY. SICKENING!

[radicalliberal]

9. Many of the fans simply don't care.

They have given us a rape culture. Thanks to them, any girl or young woman who has been raped or gang raped by high school or college football players is bound to be persecuted, even when there has been a trial and the accused were found guilty! But, again, the standard response from many of the fans (including some of those who fancy themselves as supporters of women's rights) is "So what? Who cares?" A bit hypocritical, perhaps?

[cosmicone]

2. The fucking athletes always get a pass

This needs to stop.

Also, it is pathetic that athletes make more money than people who save lives - like neurosurgeons.

[geek tragedy]

6. what's worse is that a LOT of people cared more about whether the football

team would win football games than whether sexual assault was treated as a serious problem

[lark]

8. Again, sickening!

[radicalliberal]

10. Again, many of the fans simply don't care!

Just look at the tepid response to this topic.