Dez Wells suing X

[skopi]

I thought I read on DBR that what happened was that Dez had sex with someone in front of others.

If so, then X does not need to prove rape or anything. Simply that such an act is outside of their student (or athlete?) code of conduct.

[vick]

I thought I read on DBR that what happened was that Dez had sex with someone in front of others.

If so, then X does not need to prove rape or anything. Simply that such an act is outside of their student (or athlete?) code of conduct.

If Xavier expelled him only for having sex in front of others, and not the female student, he would very likely win a Title IX suit. I don't think Xavier will be making that claim.

For more detail on his lawsuit, this article (http://www.cbssports.com/collegebasketball/eye-on-college-basketball/23249464/former-xavier-guard-dez-wells-files-lawsuit-against-school) provides more background.

[Here is a Turtle]

It would be interesting to see how this impacts the upcoming basketball season. Hopefully it doesn't distract him. Doesn't help that he didn't tell the coaches or AD before suing.

http://articles.baltimoresun.com/2013-08-23/sports/bal-terps-trio-basketball-schedule-dez-wells-lawsuit-trayvon-reeds-upside-20130823_1_dez-wells-basketball-schedule-terps-trio

[MartyClark]

If Xavier expelled him only for having sex in front of others, and not the female student, he would very likely win a Title IX suit. I don't think Xavier will be making that claim.

For more detail on his lawsuit, this article (http://www.cbssports.com/collegebasketball/eye-on-college-basketball/23249464/former-xavier-guard-dez-wells-files-lawsuit-against-school) provides more background.

I'm not arguing, just asking. Would Title IX apply in these circumstances? If so, would it give a private right of action to Wells to sue because, arguably, he was treated more harshly than a female student?

[Olympic Fan]

Don't think this case has Title IX implications.

Instead, it points to the issues that KC Johnson has been blogging about on the Durham-in-Wonderland site -- how universities have extremely unfair and unbalanced procedures for pursuing sexual assault cases ... procedures that offer almost no rights to defendants. Defendants can be punished (or even expelled ... as Wells was) without having the right to cross-examine witnesses, face their accuser or even have legal representation.

Wells is claiming that Xavier's actions have labeled him a sexual predator. The school claims that he was expelled for violating the code of student conduct, but claims that it has never revealed the actual conduct that led to his dismissal. It was reported that he was charged with sexual assault ... he was expelled ... then legal authorities (who unlike the schools are required to have things like evidence and to give the accused their legal rights) declined to press any charges.

I guess the debate -- did Xavier's action diminish Wells reputation and cause him harm? -- will be settled in court

[vick]

I'm not arguing, just asking. Would Title IX apply in these circumstances? If so, would it give a private right of action to Wells to sue because, arguably, he was treated more harshly than a female student?

In general--and I tread lightly because I'm not a lawyer--you can't have a system whereby a male student and a female student who do the same thing results in the male being expelled and the female being a victim. This is why I do not believe that Xavier's defense will be what the OP suggested (i.e. simply saying a public sexual act is enough), and that Olympic Fan is correct that the lawsuit will ultimately not turn on Title IX.

One rather peculiar aspect of Xavier's handling of this matter is that they expelled Wells before the criminal case was over (and it's not as if the case dragged along). This is somewhat irregular--note that whatever problems one might have Duke's handling of the lacrosse case, the school did not act beyond an interim suspension--because it places the student in a legally precarious situation of having to 'testify' before the school's tribunal, often without the legal right to counsel, with those materials being potentially subpoenaed in the court case.

[Duvall]

Don't think this case has Title IX implications.

Instead, it points to the issues that KC Johnson has been blogging about on the Durham-in-Wonderland site -- how universities have extremely unfair and unbalanced procedures for pursuing sexual assault cases ... procedures that offer almost no rights to defendants. Defendants can be punished (or even expelled ... as Wells was) without having the right to cross-examine witnesses, face their accuser or even have legal representation.

Then again, the imbalance has been known to tilt in the other direction as well, (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/08/01/yale-sexual-assault-punishment_n_3690100.html) with some of the more image-conscious universities putting their institutional thumb on the proverbial scale. (http://outfront.blogs.cnn.com/2013/03/25/federal-investigation-at-unc-university-official-compared-rape-to-football-says-student/)

[loran16]

Then again, the imbalance has been known to tilt in the other direction as well, (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/08/01/yale-sexual-assault-punishment_n_3690100.html) with some of the more image-conscious universities putting their institutional thumb on the proverbial scale. (http://outfront.blogs.cnn.com/2013/03/25/federal-investigation-at-unc-university-official-compared-rape-to-football-says-student/)


Yeah for the record, it's a far bigger problem that many universities - Yale being a notable one that's come up a bit - have policies that try and shut up victims of sexual assault and shame them from reporting.

What happened at Duke and MAYBE at Xavier is bad for those falsely accused, but the other way appears the be a much bigger problem.

[Here is a Turtle]

I guess the debate -- did Xavier's action diminish Wells reputation and cause him harm? -- will be settled in court

I guess it depends on your view of it. I remember that he was a bit rattled during the game against Northwestern because the students yelled at him "No means no" even after the criminal case got thrown out. I remember when ACC seasom started it happened quite a bit too. Any lawyers know if that could that be in the case or not?

[loran16]

I guess it depends on your view of it. I remember that he was a bit rattled during the game against Northwestern because the students yelled at him "No means no" even after the criminal case got thrown out. I remember when ACC seasom started it happened quite a bit too. Any lawyers know if that could that be in the case or not?

Not a criminal law specialist, but I'd suspect that being publicly accused of sexual assault will give a strong rise to a claim of harm of some sort financially to his reputation. The crowd chants will be relevant evidence, but obviously not conclusive.

[Olympic Fan]

Yeah for the record, it's a far bigger problem that many universities - Yale being a notable one that's come up a bit - have policies that try and shut up victims of sexual assault and shame them from reporting.

What happened at Duke and MAYBE at Xavier is bad for those falsely accused, but the other way appears the be a much bigger problem.

North Carolina is another school that has trampled on victims' rights.

Look, I don't know which is the biggest problem and I agree that institutions have to walk a fine line between protecting victims of sexual assault on campus and providing a fair hearing to the accused.

I don't see why it's so hard to do both -- without prejudging any individual case.

PS Loran, If you think the Duke Lax Hoax and the Wells/Xavier cases are rare examples, you need to check Johnson's blog for the many, many falsely accused men who have had to deal with university procedures that pre-judge them guilty and given them no rights.

[loran16]

PS Loran, If you think the Duke Lax Hoax and the Wells/Xavier cases are rare examples, you need to check Johnson's blog for the many, many falsely accused men who have had to deal with university procedures that pre-judge them guilty and given them no rights.

I'm aware there's plenty of examples the other way. But chronic underreporting of these things by victims is an issue throughout the country, and colleges are more known for encouraging that than doing it the other way.

[vick]

Last week (http://collegebasketballtalk.nbcsports.com/2014/03/13/district-court-judge-refuses-to-dismiss-dez-wells-lawsuit-against-xavier/), a federal judge mostly ruled in Wells's favor in declining to dismiss most of his allegations against Xavier (including, apparently, a Title IX claim, so guess I was wrong on that one).

[JetpackJesus]

Last week (http://collegebasketballtalk.nbcsports.com/2014/03/13/district-court-judge-refuses-to-dismiss-dez-wells-lawsuit-against-xavier/), a federal judge mostly ruled in Wells's favor in declining to dismiss most of his allegations against Xavier (including, apparently, a Title IX claim, so guess I was wrong on that one).

Just because the Title IX claim survived a motion to dismiss does not mean it has merit. To prevail on that motion, Xavier needed to establish that, assuming all facts alleged in the complaint to be true, the plaintiff has failed to state a claim upon which relief can be granted. It's a high bar to meet and a fairly easy motion to defeat since it doesn't take into account any pleadings or evidence beyond the complaint itself.

I know very, very little about this case or what happened at Xavier so I cannot comment on the validity or invalidity of any of his claims. But the denial of the motion to dismiss does not necessarily mean your original assessment was wrong.