Federal judge rebukes lack of due process in campus sex assault procedures

Article here. Excerpt:

'Finally, a federal judge has strongly condemned the lack of due process and fairness that students accused of sexual assault face on college campuses.

Judge F. Dennis Saylor IV, a George W. Bush appointee, ruled that Brandeis University "failed to provide a variety of procedural protections to [the accused student], many of which, in the criminal context, are the most basic and fundamental components of due process of law."

In his 89-page decision, Saylor criticizes Brandeis for a number of due process violations, including denying the accused student access to the evidence against him or even a detailed explanation of the charges against him.

For example, Brandeis' "special examiner," who investigated the accusation, determined that the accuser, known as J.C. in the lawsuit, was more credible than the accused, because he provided consistent statements while the accused couldn't remember certain events. Saylor concluded that the discrepancy between the two parties was "exactly what one would expect where one party is fully informed of the subject matter of the inquiry and the other remains ignorant, and has to surmise the specifics of the charges over the course of the investigation."'