Category: Campus

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Campus Sexual Assault

PR: SAVE Commends Senators Whitehouse and Grassley for Taking Lead to End ‘Second-Class Justice’ in Campus Sexual Assault Cases

Contact: Gina Lauterio
Telephone: 301-801-0608
Email: info@saveservices.org

SAVE Commends Senators Whitehouse and Grassley for Taking Lead to End ‘Second-Class Justice’ in Campus Sexual Assault Cases

WASHINGTON / December 12, 2014 – Stop Abusive and Violent Environments applauds Senators Sheldon Whitehouse and Chuck Grassley for taking the initiative to strengthen the involvement of criminal justice authorities in campus sexual assault cases. The senators issued the statements during a December 9 hearing of the Senate Judiciary Committee that addressed the Roles and Responsibilities of Law Enforcement in Campus Sexual Assault: http://www.judiciary.senate.gov/meetings/campus-sexual-assault-the-roles-and-responsibilities-of-law-enforcement

In his prepared statement, Sen. Whitehouse noted,

“As a former United States Attorney and Attorney General for my state, I am concerned that law enforcement is being marginalized when it comes to the crime of campus sexual assault. I am concerned that the specter of flawed law enforcement overshadows the harm of marginalized law enforcement.”

Echoing a similar sentiment, Sen. Grassley commented,

“It’s high time to make sure that a crime is a crime wherever it is committed and treated the same way. And when it is treated universally the same way we will have less rape on campuses.”

The current federal policy requires campus disciplinary committees to handle all allegations of sexual assault. This regime has fostered the widespread perception of “second-class justice” at colleges and universities that shortchanges both victims and the accused.

Hundreds of editorials have criticized the campus disciplinary committees because they lack the necessary expertise, independence, and legal authority to adjudicate complex ‘he-said, she-said’ claims, commentators say: www.accusingu.org.

SAVE has drafted the Safety of Our Students (SOS) bill, which would require that campus sexual assault cases be investigated by local law enforcement authorities: http://www.saveservices.org/camp/campus-rape-courts/

Stop Abusive and Violent Environments, a 501(c)(3) organization, is working to promote effective solutions to campus sexual assault: http://www.saveservices.org/

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Affirmative Consent Campus Sexual Assault

PR: Bureaucrats in the Bedroom: Most Say ‘No’ to Government Mandates for Consent to Sex

Contact: Gina Lauterio

Telephone: 301-801-0608

Email: info@saveservices.org

Bureaucrats in the Bedroom: Most Say ‘No’ to Government Mandates for Consent to Sex

WASHINGTON / November 12, 2014 – A national opinion poll has revealed the vast majority of persons are opposed to laws that seek to mandate how persons give consent to sexual relations. When asked whether the government should have the “authority to determine how partners give their consent to sex,” 85% of respondents answered ‘No.

In late September, Gov. Jerry Brown signed a controversial Affirmative Consent bill requiring that all California college students give their ongoing “affirmative, conscious, and voluntary” consent during the course of having sex. Similar laws are being considered in other states.

The survey was conducted October 27 – 28. Over 600 persons participated in the telephone poll. The respondents consisted of 55.6% males and 44.4% females. Detailed findings can be viewed here: http://www.saveservices.org/sexual-assault/affirmative-consent/survey-overview/

Many respondents agreed that consent to sex should be conscious, voluntary, and ongoing. But 6 out of 7 respondents had not heard of the California Affirmative Consent law, so it is unlikely these persons held an opinion whether or not consent should be “affirmative.”

Affirmative Consent policies have proven to be contentious. Many have criticized the approach as being unlikely to deter a rapist intent on assaulting a woman, and for removing the presumption of innocence from the accused.

“Hopefully lawmakers will get the message that Americans don’t want ‘Big Sister’ government dictating the most intimate details of their private lives,” explains SAVE spokesperson Sheryle Hutter. “Instead, lawmakers should be considering proven approaches to the problem of sexual assault.”

SAVE has developed a bill that would require that campus sexual assault cases be handled by local law enforcement authorities, not untrained campus disciplinary panels: http://www.saveservices.org/camp/campus-rape-courts/

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

Categories
Affirmative Consent Campus

PR: In Wake of Harvard Law Letter, Concerns Intensify About Campus Due Process

Contact: Gina Lauterio
Telephone: 301-801-0608
Email: info@saveservices.org

In Wake of Harvard Law Letter, Concerns Intensify About Campus Due Process

WASHINGTON / October 31, 2014 – Two weeks after 28 Harvard law professors signed a letter protesting the university’s new Sexual Harassment Policy, concerns about due process in campus sex cases have intensified across the country.

Signed by many pre-eminent members of the Harvard Law School faculty, the document expressed the professors’ “strong objections” to the university policy which they argued is “inconsistent with many of the most basic principles we teach” and which, they warned, “will do more harm than good.” The letter appeared in the October 15 edition of the Boston Globe: http://www.bostonglobe.com/opinion/2014/10/14/rethink-harvard-sexual-harassment-policy/HFDDiZN7nU2UwuUuWMnqbM/story.html

Since then, over 30 editorials have appeared in various news outlets expressing doubts about the procedures that colleges are following to handle criminal sexual assault offenses: www.accusingu.org.

While some editorials highlight the concerns of the Harvard faculty members, others warn of constitutional challenges such as the specter of possible federalization of sexual assault laws: http://thehill.com/blogs/pundits-blog/crime/221471-federalizing-sex

Many of the essays probe due process and other flaws in the so-called Affirmative Consent policy which was recently signed into law by California Governor Jerry Brown, and is being considered elsewhere around the nation.

At Yale University, Amalia Halikias declared, “The partisan proponents of the California bill aren’t even trying to hide its preposterous implications…With this law, California legislators have effectively declared war on the presumption of innocence.” http://yaledailynews.com/blog/2014/10/28/no-to-yes-means-yes/

Kathleen A. Bogle, director of women’s studies at La Salle University, warned bluntly, “Rapists do not care whether the victim is consenting or not…The absence of the word ‘yes’ is not going to stop serial rapists.” http://chronicle.com/article/Yes-Means-Yes-Isnt-the/149639/

Students and lawyers are finding that Affirmative Consent policies muddy the water about the meaning of consent. A survey at Massachusetts Institute of Technology revealed that two-thirds of undergraduates agree it’s possible to “accidently” rape someone, especially if alcohol is involved. http://reason.com/blog/2014/10/28/1-in-6-mit-students-sexually-assaulted

SAVE has drafted a bill that would require campus sexual assault cases be handled by local law enforcement authorities, not untrained campus disciplinary panels: http://www.saveservices.org/camp/campus-rape-courts/

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

Categories
Campus Sexual Assault

PR: Harvard Law Professors Rail Against New Sex Policy

Contact: Gina Lauterio

Telephone: 301-801-0608

Email: glauterio@saveservices.org

Harvard Law Professors Rail Against New Sex Policy

WASHINGTON / October 16, 2014 – Twenty-eight faculty members at the Harvard Law School have issued a statement criticizing the university’s new Sexual Harassment Policy. The strongly worded statement, unprecedented in its challenge to U.S. Department of Education policy, was published in the October 15 edition of the Boston Globe: http://www.bostonglobe.com/opinion/2014/10/14/rethink-harvard-sexual-harassment-policy/HFDDiZN7nU2UwuUuWMnqbM/story.html

The document expressed the law professors’ “strong objections” to the Harvard policy which is “inconsistent with many of the most basic principles we teach” and which, they warned, “will do more harm than good.”

The professors noted the university’s new definition of sexual harassment “goes significantly beyond Title IX and Title VII law.” They charged the new procedures are “overwhelmingly stacked against the accused” because they “lack the most basic elements of fairness and due process.”

The declaration recited the following particulars:

■ The policy’s “absence of any adequate opportunity to discover the facts charged and to confront witnesses and present a defense at an adversary hearing.”

■ “The lodging of the functions of investigation, prosecution, fact-finding, and appellate review in one office.”

■ A “failure to ensure adequate representation for the accused, particularly for students unable to afford representation.”

The Harvard faculty enjoined university administrators to “withdraw this sexual harassment policy” and develop new “substantive and procedural rules which would best balance the complex issues involved.”

“The Harvard faculty has rung the bell of liberty in defense of our fundamental civil rights,” notes SAVE spokesperson Sheryle Hutter. “Professors at other law schools around the country will hopefully issue similar declarations about the Department of Education’s ham-fisted and unconstitutional policies.”

Numerous commentators have criticized the Department of Education’s 2011 Dear Colleague Letter on sexual assault because it shortchanges both victims and the accused: www.accusingu.org

Stop Abusive and Violent Environments—SAVE—works for evidence-based solutions to sexual assault: www.saveservices.org

Categories
Accusing U. Affirmative Consent Campus Press Release Rape-Culture Hysteria Sexual Assault Sexual Harassment

Campus Anti-Rape Efforts Go Silly

Stop Abusive and Violent Environments
October 7, 2014

Three percent of women are victims of rape during their college years. And that number appears to be declining. But that hasn’t stopped campus activists from declaring that a sexual assault “epidemic” is sweeping our campuses and advocating for rape prevention programs that are downright silly, if not absurd.

These are 5 recent examples around the country:

1. Crazy-Making at Michigan
The new University of Michigan policy provides several examples of sexual violence. One type of “violence” listed in its policy is “withholding sex and affection.”

That’s right, U of M no longer believes that “no means no.” Columnist Susan Kruth recently wrote: “This is utterly unconscionable, and, frankly, insane. It is the absolute last message we should be sending to college students.”

2. Taco Runs at ASU
Arizona State University has come up with a novel solution to rape: having by-standers suggest that intoxicated men go out and grab some tacos.

If that doesn’t work, an intoxicated male should be persuaded that the girl he is talking to is “ugly” and “not worth sleeping with,” according to the student group Always Get Consent.

3. Whistles for Rapists
At the University of Colorado, campus activists claim that encouraging women to take common-sense protective measures like carrying a rape whistle constitutes “blaming the victim.”

So the Student Health Center is now distributing flyers to men instructing them that the “only use for a rape whistle is: If you are about to rape someone, warn them. Blow the whistle.”

4. Big Sister at Clemson
At Clemson University in South Carolina, students were required to complete a survey asking detailed questions such as:
• “How many times have you had sex (including oral) in the last 3 months?”
• “With how many different people have you had sex (including oral) in the last 3 months?”

Failure to complete the questionnaire was deemed to be a violation of the Student Code of Conduct and subject to disciplinary action.

5. Sex Week in New Mexico
Last week the University of New Mexico Women’s Resource Center co-sponsored Sex Week. The week included lectures on topics such as “How to be a Gentleman AND Get Laid,” “Reid’s Negotiating Successful Threesomes,” and “O-Face Oral.”

According to the media account, “The events are designed to prevent sexual assault, but organizers have taken a new approach…Instead of teaching students how not to get hurt, they’re teaching them how to have safer and better sex.”
We’re hoping the event organizers will explain how escalating the already hyper-sexualized environment of college campuses will serve to deter sexual assault.

Time to Get Serious About Rape

Let’s state the obvious: Rape is a crime.

Stopping rape requires improved police reporting, professional investigations, and vigorous prosecutions.

Rape cases should be handled by the criminal justice system, not by ill-equipped campus Kangaroo Courts.

Categories
Accusing U. Affirmative Consent Campus False Allegations Sexual Assault

Feminist Says No to California’s Yes-Means-Yes Law … Here’s Why

Roz Galtz
October 10, 2014

GUEST WORDS-As a lifelong, hardcore feminist—not to mention the mom of a teenage girl—I know I’m supposed to be overjoyed by passage of California’s SB 967, the law that enshrines a “yes-means-yes” consent standard for sexual assault on college and university campuses. (You’ve got to confirm your partner’s active consent throughout a sexual encounter, or the facts will support a sexual assault claim.

I want to be happy. It feels like forever since feminists have had a win. Still, I can’t help but dislike this bill entirely.

How did we get to a place where we uncritically celebrate a law meant to enhance justice for survivors of sexual assault, but only if they’re enrolled in a college or university?

Let’s start by acknowledging: college women are at no greater risk of sexual assault than other women their age. Given the reporting, you’re probably tempted to dismiss that assertion out of hand, but check it out. Rely on nearly any set of measures you’d like. As tricky as sexual assault stats can be, the evidence is nearly uniform on this point. Campus women aren’t at greater risk than their non-academic sisters, they’re just more aggregated in space.

So how did we get here? There are a number of explanations, but ultimately the only reason we need to rethink campus policies on sexual assault in the first place is that campuses are permitted to adjudicate them.

For far too long, residential campuses have been permitted to act as little, make-believe municipalities, complete with their own quasi-judicial processes, staffed by faculty who just love the buzz of the solemnity of getting to play judge.

When I try to envision a campus sexual assault proceeding, I flash on the case of a kid at a “living learning” program where I used to teach. After an RA busted him for trouble in the dorms, he distributed hundreds of copies of a disordered, rambling tract targeting her. He promised to get stray dogs to urinate all over her. He declared “open f-cking season on dumb tw-ts now” (a threat with a little extra oomph, coming from a burly guy who dressed in full combat fatigues).

The RA was terrified and terrorized—forced to flee the dorm that was both her housing and her job site.

This wasn’t a sexual assault, but the program’s response was telling. Was the guy arrested? Put before a disciplinary board? Subject to a mandatory psych eval? Did the RA receive some form of protection? Was she given a say in how the problem was handled?

The answer, as far as I could ever learn, was no on every count.

Administrators seemed anxious to keep things in house. The program was under scrutiny for its high costs and persistent crises. A senior faculty member had recently racked up his second reprimand for sexual harassment. The last thing anyone wanted was another black eye.

Faculty sentiment also ran decidedly against formal discipline, which may have led to expulsion given the student’s “priors.” Rationales for were varied—one prof simply maintained there was no way this kid could be a threat because: “I’ve had him in several classes, and he’s always been very quiet.”

(No, seriously, that’s what he said.) Of course, “this kid” was white. Does anyone buy for a minute that a burly black dude who dressed like a sniper could plaster his college with vows to torture and kill a white female RA and walk away with no repercussions…because he was quiet in class?

Now consider: these are the same folks assembling with all sense of seriousness to judge sexual assault claims on campuses. Don’t get me wrong, people with PhDs are probably no less likely than the rest of the population to be thoughtful about gender, violence, and race when confronting real-life conflict; but let’s not kid ourselves—they’re not liable to be more.

Administrators are, meanwhile, directly, materially tethered to the reputations of their institutions. No one who understands this should be surprised to learn that sexual assault adjudications are often delayed till the aggressor graduates or the victim drops out.

The cosplay that is campus criminal justice was simply never about valuing women’s lives in the first place. It’s always been about protecting institutions.

So what to do?

Source: http://www.citywatchla.com/8br-hidden/7677-feminist-says-no-to-california-s-yes-means-yes-law-here-s-why

Categories
Campus Sexual Assault

PR: SAVE Calls on Gov. Brown to Veto Bill that Would Endanger Rape Victims and Trivialize Sexual Assault

Contact: Gina Lauterio
Telephone: 908-783-3542
Email: info@saveservices.org

SAVE Calls on Gov. Brown to Veto Bill that Would Endanger Rape Victims and Trivialize Sexual Assault

WASHINGTON / September 25, 2014 – SAVE, a national victim-advocacy organization, is today calling on Gov. Jerry Brown to veto SB-967, which would impose an Affirmative Consent requirement on California colleges. The bill has been the focus of national ridicule and controversy since it was introduced earlier this year.

Stop Abusive and Violent Environments – SAVE – believes it is illogical to believe that a rapist intent on committing a violent assault would be deterred by the need to obtain a woman’s on-going “affirmative, conscious, and voluntary agreement,” as the law would require. SAVE charges the bill’s Affirmative Consent provisions would lull potential victims into a false of security.

SB-967 would also blur the distinction between consensual sex and criminal rape, SAVE says. This would serve to squander investigative resources on highly questionable cases and to trivialize the legitimate needs of rape survivors.

Robin Koerner has observed, “Most consensual sexual activity between normal people does not involve the kind of explicit, subsequently provable statement of consent, that this bill demands.” The bill would also have the effect of removing the presumption of innocence and removing due process protections for the accused: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/robin-koerner/no-sex-please-were-califo_b_5774674.html

Writing in the New Republic, Batya Ungar-Sargon recently argued SB-967 would only serve to codify a “troubling double standard” that would have the “potential to pervert justice.” http://www.newrepublic.com/article/119459/californias-campus-consent-laws-every-sex-act-potential-crime

“Not a single legislator who voted in favor of this bill has ever stated that he or she actually complies with the dictates of this bill in his or her private life,” notes SAVE spokesperson Sheryle Hutter. “That says a lot how impractical SB-967 would be in real life.”

Numerous editorials have criticized and ridiculed the notion of Affirmative Consent: www.accusingu.org .

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

Categories
Bills Campus Press Release Sexual Assault

PR: Turning the Criminal Justice System into an After-Thought: SAVE Announces Opposition to Campus Accountability and Safety Act

Contact: Teri Stoddard
Telephone: 301-801-0608
Email: teristoddard@saveservices.org

Turning the Criminal Justice System into an After-Thought:

SAVE Announces Opposition to Campus Accountability and Safety Act

WASHINGTON / August 5, 2014 – Today Stop Abusive and Violent Environments (SAVE) is announcing its opposition to the Campus Accountability and Safety Act. The CASA bill was introduced last week by Sen. Claire McCaskill of Missouri.

By limiting the involvement of the criminal justice system, the bill would make it harder for thorough investigations to be completed, fair trials to be conducted, and appropriate sanctions to be imposed. The bill impairs the deployment of criminal justice resources in three ways:

1. The Act would not require campus rapes to be reported to law enforcement, thus thwarting the ability of trained investigators to collect evidence.

2. Campus security programs do not possess the legal authority to search FBI DNA and fingerprint databases. A match can prevent a future rape, and allow a previous crime to be solved, as well.

3. The law would preclude the local prosecutor’s office from filing charges unless and until the victim gave permission.

Over 200 editorials have criticized the existing system of campus disciplinary committees for failing to appropriately respond to victims’ needs and conducting shoddy investigations: www.accusingu.org . Even if the accused is found guilty, the most severe punishment is expulsion, a sanction that is woefully inadequate, most say.

The CASA bill has been sharply criticized for ignoring due process protections, as well. Charlotte Hays at the Independent Women’s Forum highlighted concerns about the “erosion of due process for the accused.” Diana Furchtgott-Roth of the Manhattan Institute charged the bill would encourage colleges to “throw out due process.”

“The CASA bill says the way to stop rape is to turn the criminal justice system into an administrative after-thought,” notes SAVE spokesperson Sheryle Hutter. “Rape victims are outraged by this misguided attempt to handcuff the involvement of police, detectives, and prosecutors.”

Stop Abusive and Violent Environments—SAVE—is a victim-advocacy organization working for evidence-based solutions to domestic violence and sexual assault: www.saveservices.org

Categories
Campus Civil Rights Sexual Assault Wrongful Convictions

PR: Campus Justice Coalition Seeks to Restore Fairness in Campus Sex Cases

Contact: Teri Stoddard
Telephone: 301-801-0608
Email: teristoddard@saveservices.org

Campus Justice Coalition Seeks to Restore Fairness in Campus Sex Cases

WASHINGTON / July 30, 2014 – Representatives of sexual assault victims, the accused, and universities have come together to establish the Campus Justice Coalition. The Coalition will seek to achieve legislative change to assure the proper handling of sexual assault cases on college campuses.

Campus sex committees have been criticized for being poorly trained, under-resourced, and lacking the legal authority to impose meaningful sanctions. Rape is a crime, but the campus boards possess legal authority to only expel, not imprison the perpetrator.

The current system was established by a 2011 Department of Education regulation which shifted the resolution process to campus disciplinary panels, and eliminated a number of due process safeguards. Under current policies, neither the identified victim or the accused person are allowed to be represented by an attorney.

Following imposition of the federal mandate, numerous complaints and lawsuits have been filed by victims, and by men claiming they were wrongfully expelled: http://www.saveservices.org/wp-content/uploads/Campus-Sexual-Assault-Lawsuits.pdf

Basketball star Dez Wells was expelled from Xavier University in Ohio on allegations of non-consensual sex. The County prosecutor termed the expulsion “fundamentally unfair” and “seriously flawed.” In April the University paid an undisclosed amount, likely exceeding $1 million, to the former student: http://mynorthwest.com/33/2506222/Basketball-star-Wells-settles-suit-against-Xavier

Two weeks ago the University of Connecticut agreed to pay $900,000 to a student who was raped in August 2011. Despite the existence of the new federal policy, the university mishandled her complaint, and the alleged rapist never faced criminal charges: http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2014/07/21/u-connecticut-pay-13-million-settle-sexual-assault-lawsuit#sthash.xJR5NBcw.dpbs

“The shadow-system of justice has betrayed victims and the accused, and has put universities in an impossible situation,” notes Campus Justice Coalition spokesperson Sheryle Hutter. “Sexual assault cases require the full resources of the criminal justice system, not a sorry replay of vigilante justice meted out by untrained amateurs.”

More information on the Campus Justice Coalition can be seen here: http://www.saveservices.org/camp/campus-justice-coalition/

Categories
Bills Campus Civil Rights DED Sexual Assault Directive Innocence Law Enforcement Press Release Sexual Assault

Safety of Our Students: SAVE Calls on Congress to Fix Broken System of Campus Rape Panels

Contact: Teri Stoddard
Telephone: 301-801-0608
Email: teristoddard@saveservices.org

Safety of Our Students: SAVE Calls on Congress to Fix Broken System of Campus Rape Panels

WASHINGTON / May 21, 2014 – Based on growing complaints by victims and accused students, Stop Abusive and Violent Environments (SAVE) is calling on Congress to fix the current system of campus disciplinary committees. A 2011 federal policy mandated that these panels adjudicate claims of campus sexual assault. Over 350 editorials to date have sharply criticized the boards both for shortchanging victims and violating the rights of the accused: www.accusingu.org

SAVE is proposing enactment of a new law entitled “SOS: Safety of Our Students.” The law would require that all allegations of campus criminal sexual assault be referred to local criminal justice authorities for investigation and adjudication. The full text of the bill can be seen here: http://www.saveservices.org/camp/campus-rape-courts

In 2011 the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights issued a “Dear Colleague” letter that shifted responsibility for campus rape cases to the committees that handle cheating and plagiarism cases. These panels lack legal authority to subpoena witnesses, conduct in-depth investigations, or impose criminal sanctions.

On May 1, 2014 the Department of Education announced it was launching investigations of 55 universities for “possible violations of federal law over the handling of sexual violence and harassment complaints.” The probe underscores federal concerns over the turmoil and confusion that the current system is now experiencing.

Five days later a USA Today Editorial Board column charged the current approach is “failing” because the “strongest punishment schools can deliver is to expel a rapist from campus.” A May 13 editorial by the Los Angeles Times Board echoed similar concerns.

“Despite the best of intentions by its proponents, the current system represents second-class justice to victims and third-world justice for the accused,” charges SAVE spokesperson Sheryle Hutter. “We call on Congress to act promptly to respond to the growing crisis in handling campus rape cases.”

Stop Abusive and Violent Environments—SAVE—is a victim-advocacy organization working for evidence-based solutions to domestic violence and sexual assault: www.saveservices.org