Man acquitted of rape charges sues over expulsion

Article here. Excerpt:

'A man is suing his former university, saying officials wrongly suspended him days before graduation over two separate rape allegations he was later acquitted of.

Jose Aponte, now 24, wants a federal judge in Pittsburgh to force Indiana University of Pennsylvania to award his bachelor’s degree in criminology or make the school expunge his disciplinary record so he can transfer his credits and get a degree elsewhere.

The Philadelphia native, who now lives and works in New York, also seeks unspecified money damages.

In the lawsuit, Mr. Aponte said he was not given the chance to challenge the allegations made against him in a school disciplinary hearing. On May 1, 2015, he was accused of rape after sexual contact with one woman. The next day, he was accused of rape by a different woman. School officials immediately suspended him. He did not take his final examinations or participate in commencement. He was later expelled.

The lawsuit says university officials “colluded” with police to keep his accusers from testifying in person at his June 2, 2015, expulsion hearing. The women’s police statements were read into the record, and Mr. Aponte couldn’t challenge their allegations, the lawsuit said.'