US rape victim maybe expelled by her college for "intimidating" her rapist

[FreedomOfTheTess]

Summary of story for those who are at work and might not want to open the links:

• A former assistant dean of the college in question, University of North Carolina, has filed a complaint (along with three current and one former student) about UNC. Melinda Manning, who quit her job last month, says she was pressured to under-report sexual assault cases.

• The student, Landen Gambill is one of the co-complainants, and has spoken about her case publicly.

• UNC officials have threatened her with expulsion for speaking out publicly about her story, saying she has been "disruptive" and "intimidating" her rapist.

Landen Gambill has not* named her rapist in any of her interviews.

Student faced with expulsion

UNC sexual assault victims speak up about imperfect system

UNC sexual assault complaint

The whole thing beggars belief.

Oh dear GOD.

Well. How dare she. Let's stone her. Poor little rapist, being intimidated. We should all be very kind to him. It's not like he's violated another human being or anything and of course, how he feels is what matters. He only raped her, after all. That doesn't mean anything should happen to him.

I honestly want to book myself a flight over there, march up to these officials and shake them until their faces fall off.

What the hell is WRONG with them? How can they even consider that someone who RAPED someone is in any way a bloody VICTIM.

What Hectate says. It makes me angry.

Oh ffs. Some days I just despair. I really do.

Yup. me too. well, yet another article to add to the pile to show people when they start on about how there's no need for feminism these days because women are equal...

Having read the account, what I can't fathom is why she didn't deal direct with the police or, when she reported the rape, the college authorities didn't take it straight to the police. This is a criminal matter, not one a university is qualified to handle.

The idea that a university should replace the criminal justice system is a nonsense. It's very like the SWP scandal, where the Socialist Workers Party similarly felt entitled to arbitrate about a rape allegation, leaving the most appalling stench and losing the party any credibility it still had.

I'm with a poster on Jezebel.com, who wrote: I may be just a simple turnip farmer, but I STILL do not fucking understand why an honor board a) exists, b) is given adjudication powers when they consist of undergrads, graduate students and faculty with no necessary degree or experience in criminal prosecution or the law and c) would be anywhere near involved in the adjudication of a sexual assault case.

Oh, nothing like a nice bit of victim blaming/bashing on a sunny Wednesday afternoon.
I think I have now reached a permanent state of rage.

Writehead, that's just how the system seems to work in US colleges, they have their own police departments and everything.

There are many similar stories from UMASS Amherst, in which the women reported their rapists to the University administration only to end up being asked to leave, and in one case, being sectioned and not allowed back on campus.

The ex-Dean is saying those sitting on the panel got an hour's training whilst UNC are claiming it is a day?

Even if it is a day... A DAY? On handling sexual assault and rape cases? Whaaaaaat?

Horrible, but sadly not shocking (I'm originally American so have many family and friends at college there, including UNC)

I hope these cases are the start of real cultural change in accredited US campuses. I think it's only 40 or so years since Cambridge and Oxford students weren't under the jurisdiction of local police, only their colleges, so the concept of administering their own justice, just like the military, isn't so alien or necessarily bad - the fact that they are clearly crap and biased at dispensing justice is the problem.

It's sad but not that long ago she could have been shot for a belief (kent campus)guess usa really hasfear at it's puritan patriarchal heart. Cut his cock off that should intimidate him.

I don't believe in vigilante justice, dani, but UNC taking the case to the actual justice system would have been a good start.

notcitrus - it was a family member of mine who brought this case to my attention.

She is at a US college and was recently raped by a "star" athlete on one of the college's big sports teams. As you're originally American, you obviously know how how seriously sports are taken in college, and how revered the star athletes are.

When she reported the rape, she was advised by the college administrator she reported it to, not to pursue her complaint "as everyone will turn against you, because this is 'Fred'."

I'm proud to say she has proceeded with the complaint, but I cannot say much more (nor can I name the college at this stage), as the whole complaint is still in progress.

It's worth noting though, that despite this complaint having been made and the process is active, 'Fred' is still plying his trade for the college in his sport.

Tess Ugh. Best wishes for your family member. Are the police involved or just college faculty?

notcitrus - the police are involved. My family member went to them because of the response she got from her college.

The college's excuse for not suspending him from being on the sports team, is that as she pursued this through the police, it isn't a college issue.

Er hello - she did TRY to do it through the college - but met with a brick wall.

Once the whole process is over, my family member is planning to be one of a (sadly) long line of college students, who like Landen Gambill, are sharing their college rape (horror) stories with the media.

My mum is originally from America, so I've long been aware of how badly colleges handle sexual assaults, but part of me thought they'd got better. It's very clear now that they haven't. Well at least they all haven't.

Tess, how dreadful for your family member.

I remember one family member, who was a pretty egotistical kid age 17, got a baseball scholarship to college and came back saying it was really uncomfortable being treated like a god even though his GPA wasn't great. He got injured before he could really get used to it, but its not hard to see where encouraging an entitlement complex in a young man, and mixing with booze and opportunity, is likely to end.

I hope the police do everything they can.

Just a little update on the experiences of my family member.

Her college have asked her to sign some kind of legal document, pledging that she won't "go public" on this, i.e. that she won't go to the media. At all. Even afterwards.

She is horrified, utterly horrified and has refused to sign it.

She now wants to leave the college, and transfer to another, but the deadline is 1 April which doesn't give her long. And she isn't exactly in the best frame of mind right now either. However, a rape support advocate who has been working with her for a few weeks now, said she will help with the application.

I have no words for the whole situation.

My family member is the victim here, yet she is being treated otherwise, and now feels forced out of the college. Meanwhile good old 'Fred' is still being lauded as a hero.

Thanks for updating Tess, it sounds awful

Good for her, and best of luck for her application to a different college.