New Factor in Campus Sexual Assault Cases: Counsel for the Accused

Parents Forum
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<p>A class of lawyers have appropriated the tools often used to fight misconduct and turned them against the prosecution, confronting higher education’s approach to the issue.</p>

<p><a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/20/nyregion/new-factor-in-campus-sexual-assault-cases-counsel-for-the-accused.html"&gt;http://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/20/nyregion/new-factor-in-campus-sexual-assault-cases-counsel-for-the-accused.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

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<p>Schools should defer to professionals in this case - the local police.</p>

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<p>They are certainly paying with the out of court settlements these days. The fearless folks at the Harvard Crimson just put a complete list of cases and outcomes together. If anything writing big checks should temper the capriciousness of the judicial tribunals at colleges.</p>

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<p>Anyone watch The Good Wife? </p>

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<p>An interesting article. </p>

<p>I think that the negative effects of being expelled from college for sexual assault are potentially far more serious than “not being able to get into grad school,” as the article suggests. Try not being able to get into any decent 4-year institution to finish your degree. Try having your “conviction” perpetually available via google.For an innocent person, these are very, very serious consequences.</p>

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<p>There have been a gazillion threads about similar topics in this forum.</p>

<p>Personally, I don’t think colleges SHOULD just leave it to the police. Nor do I think we should be using “beyond a reasonable doubt” standard to decide whether someone should be kicked out of college.</p>

<p>At the same time, I DO think the accused should have the right to counsel, that counsel for the accused be allowed to cross-examine witnesses, and there should be procedural safeguards for BOTH the accused and the victim. </p>