Month: March 2015

Panelists Call for End to Second-Class Justice in Campus Sex Cases

WASHINGTON / March 18, 2015 – Panelists at a recent media briefing called for major changes to the federally mandated system of campus disciplinary committees, which are now required to hear all allegations of campus sexual assault. The six presentations were made during a March 13 briefing held at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C.

In her opening statement, national columnist Cathy Young criticized media accounts for failing to report both sides of campus rape allegations.

George Washington University Law School professor John Banzhaf argued that administrators at state universities are at risk of being sued for giving short shrift to fundamental due process protections from the accused.

New York City lawyer Susan Kapan deplored the “if she’s crying, she’s not lying” standard of proof currently employed by some campus tribunals.

Constitutional attorney Hans Bader revealed how recent federal mandates have created financial incentives for colleges to expel the accused, rather than to seek justice.

Representing Families Advocating for Campus Equality, Cynthia Garrett noted how affirmative consent policies are inherently biased against the man because they presume male initiation of all sexual encounters.

And former Auburn University student Joshua Strange revealed how the campus proceeding he faced was so biased that the decision to expel was evident even at the very beginning.

“Persons accused of rape deserve to receive due process protections, and victims deserve the full resources of the criminal justice system,” notes SAVE spokesperson Sheryl Hutter. “Anything less represents a deplorable case of second-class justice.”

The presentations are available in high-quality broadcast format: https://youtu.be/uERIh6DkAb0

Stop Abusive and Violent Environments is working to promote effective solutions to campus sexual assault: http://www.saveservices.org/

Contact: Gina Lauterio
Email: info@saveservices.org

‘Fundamentally Dishonest:’ Hunting Ground Movie Distorts the Truth and Shortchanges Victims, SAVE Charges

WASHINGTON / March 3, 2015 – SAVE, a national organization working to end sexual assault, is criticizing the recently released movie The Hunting Ground for presenting false statistics, offering a one-side portrayal of the problem, and failing to call for greater police involvement in campus sex cases.

Produced by CNN Films, The Hunting Ground purports to be a documentary. In fact, the movie contains numerous factual errors and omits essential perspectives. The film does not attempt to verify the accuracy or completeness of persons’ accounts.

The film makes the claim that 20% of college women are sexually assaulted, even though the U.S. Department of Justice reports a woman’s risk is under one percent each year: http://www.bjs.gov/index.cfm?ty=pbdetail&iid=5176

The movie misleadingly states that “more than 35 other schools all declined to be interviewed for this film,” when in fact two college presidents agreed to conduct interviews: https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2015/01/29/new-documentary-suggests-incorrectly-no-college-leaders-would-sit-camera-interviews

The film does not interview any men accused of rape, does not mention any of the widely publicized examples of false rape allegations, and neglects to highlight the growing number of lawsuits filed against universities charging wrongful expulsion.

The Hunting Ground makes no mention of the recent Rolling Stone/UVA story, widely viewed as an example of advocacy journalism based on implausible and unsubstantiated allegations.

Although the movie highlights how universities are doing a poor job handling sexual assault cases, the producers do not take the logical step of calling for greater involvement of criminal justice authorities. This omission leaves victims attempting to secure justice at the hands of ill-equipped campus committees, SAVE says.

“The Hunting Ground presents bogus statistics, presents only one side of the story, and is designed to play on viewers’ emotions,” notes SAVE spokeswoman Sheryl Hutter. “That’s fundamentally dishonest.”

SAVE has produced a 4-minute video, The Hunting Ground: Assaulting the Truth? which can be viewed here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=9MBGMlpc4KE

Stop Abusive and Violent Environments is working to promote effective solutions to campus sexual assault: http://www.saveservices.org/