More Straws in the Wind

Although the big social issue for the Regents at their upcoming meeting will be the intolerance resolution, sitting in the background for them and UC is the whole sexual consent matter. We have yet to see how the university will reconcile the external court pressure for due process with whatever it comes up with for internal investigation.

We have already noted one case that went against UC-San Diego.* Now there is another court case, this one from the U of Michigan:

The University of Michigan will throw out its finding that a student engaged in nonconsensual sex with a female friend in his dorm room as part of a lawsuit settlement — a move that drew sharp criticism from the female student who filed the complaint. In the agreement, which was signed by the university on Sept. 1 and by the student on Sept. 8, U-M says it will throw out its previous findings that Drew Sterrett — who was in his second year at U-M when he was kicked out — violated the school's sexual conduct policy. In exchange, Sterrett agreed not to come back to school or to disparage the university. The settlement, if approved by a federal judge, would end a lawsuit Sterrett filed against the university. The settlement also says the university — which is not admitting to mistakes — cannot do any further investigation into the case... Sterrett's attorney, Deborah Gordon, said her client was satisfied with the settlement and believes the lawsuit helped to expose the truth. He is hopeful the settlement will help clear his name, she said. Having the courts involved helped in making sure all the facts  were investigated, Gordon added... The female student who filed the original complaint believes the university broke its promise to her in agreeing to the settlement. She issued a statement strongly criticizing the university for its handling of sexual assault complaints...

From http://www.freep.com/story/news/local/michigan/2015/09/12/u-m-drops-nonconsensual-sex-finding-settle-suit/72145304/.  Inside Higher Ed carries a summary: https://www.insidehighered.com/quicktakes/2015/09/14/michigan-settles-suit-sex-misconduct-case 
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*http://uclafacultyassociation.blogspot.com/2015/07/the-uc-sd-court-decision-will-be-tough.html 
UC is now appealing: http://www.latimes.com/local/california/la-me-uc-sexual-misconduct-20150912-story.html