Des Moines Register
September 18, 2008
JOHN NAUGHTON
jnaughton@dmreg.com
Coralville — An independent investigator's report found the University of Iowa failed to adequately protect the alleged victim of a sexual assault by athletes and detailed substantial flaws with the school's behavior, an attorney told the Iowa Board of Regents this afternoon."The university's response was simply not adequate," said James Sears Bryant, who led a legal team from the Stolar Partnership, a firm based in St. Louis and Dallas, that was charged with investigating the university's reaction to an incident involving two former football players in October, 2007.
Two former U of I football players, Abe Satterfield and Cedric Everson, have been charged with sex abuse in connection with the alleged assault at Hillcrest Residence Hall on Oct. 14. Cedric Everson, 19, and Abe Satterfield, 20, are accused of sexually assaulting a female student-athlete in an unoccupied dorm room. They have pleaded not guilty and are scheduled for trial Nov. 3.
Among the findings in today's report, which discovered flaws in the university's administration proceeding, was the alleged victim was harassed by student-athletes at the school that included physical threats and shouts.Although the investigators found significant problems there was no evidenceof an attempted cover-up, Bryant said.The university needs to address the problems with the process, Bryant said.Among the other criticisms: University officials did not turn over documents to the Board of Regents during the investigation following the event, the school did not provide adequate counseling support for the student when the victim was interviewed by university officials, and university administrators in some cases failed to act together because of territorial disputes. [To view the entire story, go to: http://www.desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080918/NEWS/80918025/0/NEWS09 ]
No comments:
Post a Comment