The media and the fringe are sensationalists by their nature. That is how they go about being heard. Basically the lawyer filing suit admitted this in including Peyton's situation in the suit. They want this to be tried in the court of public opinion to put pressure on the University to cave in and pay the accusers and their attorney. That is the game being played. The reality is Title IX lawsuits and investigations are common.
As of April of last year, there were over 100 colleges/universities under investigation for whether schools violated title IX in investigating sexual violence cases. Just to name a few - Michigan State, UVA, LSU, Vanderbilt, Texas A & M, SMU, Oklahoma State, North Carolina, Oregon, Baylor, Arizona State, Florida State (Winston) & Missouri. Many of these cases involve student athletes as either the accused or accusers.
I pulled the following from an article by a lawyer who defended Winston in his title IX hearing:
Regarding title IX civil litigation, in the event of alleged sexual misconduct, a plaintiff must still prove that there was in fact gender or sexual discrimination. The sexual misconduct must be so severe so as to create a hostile environment that deprives the student of educational programming. A school mishandling of an alleged rape does not necessarily trigger a valid Title IX claim. Lastly, a plaintiff must show that they reported the alleged sexual misconduct to the appropriate person and that the person’s response evinced “deliberate indifference.” In these types of cases, factors such as school policy, school investigative history, and the general atmosphere on campus will help measure the degree to which a school evinced “deliberate indifference.”
Plaintiffs’ attorneys are taking advantage of an unsettled situation and filing lawsuits against universities that are racing to comply with evolving Title IX requirements. Plaintiffs’ lawyers who sue under Title IX usually are given a second chance to litigate the same misconduct because the student who alleged sexual assault has already exhausted her administrative Title IX remedies. The grievance process, which is becoming increasingly more like a civil trial, is a test run allowing plaintiffs’ attorneys to try their case prior to filing a lawsuit against the university. Moreover, by allowing plaintiffs’ attorneys to bring these claims, schools become exposed to a second Title IX lawsuit which may have more merit, namely a lawsuit from a student who claims to have been falsely accused. False sexual assault or rape allegations can wreak unquantifiable reputational damage, and severely impact a student’s educational environment. In fact, there are currently a number of lawsuits pending nationwide where alleged student rapists are claiming their own Title IX cause of action. A university’s rush to appease counsel for students alleging sexual assault, without considering the ramifications on presumptively innocent students, can lead to two lawsuits against the university for the same incident.
One can see that there is a danger in the accused filing a Title IX action, as well, and university's have to keep that in mind.
So while this is in the headlines, keep in mind no UT athlete has actually been convicted of a crime related to the Title IX issue, to this point. Baylor had a player found guilty of rape, and Vanderbilt had 2 players in prison (prior to a mistrial being declared) for one of the most hideous rape crimes ever on a campus (that case is being tried again this year and those guys are going back to jail). So, while this is not going away anytime soon, it only gets ugly in two (2) scenarios: 1) University leadership and supporters lose patience in standing against the allegations, or if somehow the plaintiffs prove that the athletic department/university exerted inappropriate influence over the process (unlikely since all players are immediately suspended until the authorities chose to declare the defendants innocent). If we as supporters believe that Butch and those in charge are actually doing the best they can to educate and create an environment that we can all be proud of, then we simply need to support the program, ignore the fringe, and let the lawyers do their job to defend against the allegations. Just ignore the Debby Jennings, the ambulance chasing attorneys, the Tennessean, and the fringe that are out to do harm to the University. They know the yelling, twittering, name calling, and threats are the only real ammunition they have.
As of April of last year, there were over 100 colleges/universities under investigation for whether schools violated title IX in investigating sexual violence cases. Just to name a few - Michigan State, UVA, LSU, Vanderbilt, Texas A & M, SMU, Oklahoma State, North Carolina, Oregon, Baylor, Arizona State, Florida State (Winston) & Missouri. Many of these cases involve student athletes as either the accused or accusers.
I pulled the following from an article by a lawyer who defended Winston in his title IX hearing:
Regarding title IX civil litigation, in the event of alleged sexual misconduct, a plaintiff must still prove that there was in fact gender or sexual discrimination. The sexual misconduct must be so severe so as to create a hostile environment that deprives the student of educational programming. A school mishandling of an alleged rape does not necessarily trigger a valid Title IX claim. Lastly, a plaintiff must show that they reported the alleged sexual misconduct to the appropriate person and that the person’s response evinced “deliberate indifference.” In these types of cases, factors such as school policy, school investigative history, and the general atmosphere on campus will help measure the degree to which a school evinced “deliberate indifference.”
Plaintiffs’ attorneys are taking advantage of an unsettled situation and filing lawsuits against universities that are racing to comply with evolving Title IX requirements. Plaintiffs’ lawyers who sue under Title IX usually are given a second chance to litigate the same misconduct because the student who alleged sexual assault has already exhausted her administrative Title IX remedies. The grievance process, which is becoming increasingly more like a civil trial, is a test run allowing plaintiffs’ attorneys to try their case prior to filing a lawsuit against the university. Moreover, by allowing plaintiffs’ attorneys to bring these claims, schools become exposed to a second Title IX lawsuit which may have more merit, namely a lawsuit from a student who claims to have been falsely accused. False sexual assault or rape allegations can wreak unquantifiable reputational damage, and severely impact a student’s educational environment. In fact, there are currently a number of lawsuits pending nationwide where alleged student rapists are claiming their own Title IX cause of action. A university’s rush to appease counsel for students alleging sexual assault, without considering the ramifications on presumptively innocent students, can lead to two lawsuits against the university for the same incident.
One can see that there is a danger in the accused filing a Title IX action, as well, and university's have to keep that in mind.
So while this is in the headlines, keep in mind no UT athlete has actually been convicted of a crime related to the Title IX issue, to this point. Baylor had a player found guilty of rape, and Vanderbilt had 2 players in prison (prior to a mistrial being declared) for one of the most hideous rape crimes ever on a campus (that case is being tried again this year and those guys are going back to jail). So, while this is not going away anytime soon, it only gets ugly in two (2) scenarios: 1) University leadership and supporters lose patience in standing against the allegations, or if somehow the plaintiffs prove that the athletic department/university exerted inappropriate influence over the process (unlikely since all players are immediately suspended until the authorities chose to declare the defendants innocent). If we as supporters believe that Butch and those in charge are actually doing the best they can to educate and create an environment that we can all be proud of, then we simply need to support the program, ignore the fringe, and let the lawyers do their job to defend against the allegations. Just ignore the Debby Jennings, the ambulance chasing attorneys, the Tennessean, and the fringe that are out to do harm to the University. They know the yelling, twittering, name calling, and threats are the only real ammunition they have.
