Reports continue to come out accusing Baylor of inappropriately handling sexual assault cases. The newest development involves the school’s usage of its code of conduct.
Attorneys with a number of women suing the school claim administrators at Baylor told women that if they reported their sexual assault, they would face punishment for violating the school’s rigid code of conduct.
“A number of victims were told that if they made a report of rape, their parents would be informed of the details of where they were and what they were doing,” said Chad Dunn, a Houston attorney who represents six women who have sued Baylor under the anonymous identification of Jane Doe.
Baylor’s code of conduct has been around for years and includes a number of strict rules. Dancing on campus was banned until 1996. Until 2015, adultery, and homosexual acts were also among a list of banned rules.
Alcohol use is also among banned acts by the conservative school. According to two women suing the school, that part of the code conduct was used against them.
One woman said her case began when she called police to report a physical assault on another woman at an off-campus party. Police demanded to know if she was underage and had been drinking, then arrested and reported her to the school office that investigates conduct code violations, she said. She told Baylor officials her drinking was a result of being raped a month earlier and detailed what happened in person and in a letter.
She received an alcohol code violation and told to do 25 hours community service, and when she tried to appeal, the woman said Baylor officials urged her to drop it. The school never pursued her rape claim.
“I was told by many Baylor staff that they couldn’t do anything for me because my assault was off campus, yet they had no problem punishing me for my off-campus drinking,” the woman said. Schools are bound by federal law to investigate on- and off-campus sex assault allegations.
Throughout the investigations into Baylor’s handling of sexual assaults, the school has kept quiet and been hesitant to release reports. This is even after the Big 12 requested that the school release more information.
The newest allegations are among a laundry list of mishandled sexual assault cases by the school. These have led to the firings of former school president Ken Starr and football coach Art Briles. But even though the administrators are gone, the violations are still there, and the school is far from done with this scandal.
[AP]
