<p>I would not go as far as to say she has a problem; OK, maybe a bit publicity hungry now, but that is about it. </p>
<p>Given the options available, it is easy to deduce she took the path of least resistance, which had the highest chances to garner the guilty of rape verdict that she wanted, without having to legally defend her side of the story. Not sure there is anyone, who upon accusing another, would not take this option if available to him. The court system guilty standard for felony rape is way higher than that of any school’s disciplinary board. </p>
<p>The real problem is schools should not even be adjudicating these cases at all; it cannot work, since both parties attend said schools. An objective party, which is familiar with criminal statues, is required to be fair all around. </p>
<p>Offering a new rooming assignment is supposed to be possible, outside usual housing selection procedures. From one source: “Title IX contains provisions to reduce the institutional trauma survivors of sexual assault deal with on a daily basis. For example, students may be forced to encounter their assailants in class, in living situations or in campus clubs. Title IX requires that universities take measures to prevent this, such as facilitating class and dorm reassignments and issuing stay-away orders.”<br>
I think some info may be missing here or the timeline is confusing. </p>
<p>Nope – nothing is missing. Lexie Brackenridge objected to living in the same dorm as the hockey players who had been involved in harassing her. Those Title IX guidelines would not be applicable as the actual assailant had been suspended and was not among the hockey players who would be living in her dorm. It looks like a hyper-technical application of the rules by Williams (the assailant’s teammates had not been found to have committed violations so Williams did not have to accommodate the request).</p>
<p>Her request had to go through the Dean’s Office, not through housing. It’s not the housing office’s (which is just 2 people, btw) responsibility to listen to harassment complaints. That’s really weird that they would avoid talking to the deans about it. Plus the roommate doesn’t really have a right to a special request–that would be more of an extra privilege. I’m not so sure this friend of her friend is a reliable source, either. </p>
<p>The article says she got medical attention, at home. We don’t know what that included. And that her parents (I’d presume she was there, too) consulted an attorney who advised against pressing charges. Not the college. “After a couple of weeks, Lexie returned…met with two deans who, she says, persuaded her to file a complaint in the college’s disciplinary system against her alleged assailant. Originally, she says, she had refused.” Then there was, unfortunately, the issue of witnesses supposedly stacked against her. </p>
<p>I don’t know where she took all the right steps versus where the college ignored its responsibilities to students. We’re all told, IRL, that time matters, the right medical detail matters, the right reporting. I understand a young gal’s confusion and reluctance. But if you want a case, you build one. (Please don’t confuse that with lack of empathy.)</p>
<p>The deans should have been able to steer her to the right campus support- and should have known there is a procedure that includes her feelings her housing is safe. I don’t know where her initial reluctance swung her wide of the systems that should be in place. Which deans, did she work with women’s support? For all the publicity, there are still gaps in what we know.</p>
<p>lookingforward, those two links you posted are relatively recent additions to the Williams website. I remember looking up the sexual assault policies during one of those very long CC discussions on the subject and being taken aback that the bolded point Williams wanted to get across that no one was ever required to report to police. It would be interesting to do a back in time web search and see the difference. I remember the language was enough to make me have a discussion with my daughter to make sure she knew the first call should be to the police, not RASAN, security, the dean’s office, the health center, or an off-campus rape hotline, all of which were seen as primary suggestions by the college. </p>