When a Student Confides a Rape, Should a Professor Have to Report It?

[branford]

56. Defendants are not rapists until convicted. "Alleged" is a very powerful word.

Individuals accused of rape have the same protections as any other criminal defendant, regardless of whether rape is difficult to prove in court, particularly in state run colleges and universities.

How about we let the criminal and civil justice system deal with alleged rapes? A university campus is not exempt from the requirements the rest of society must obey. If a rape is alleged, the university should report it to the police and local district attorney. College administrators lack the requisite training, expertise or legal mandate to essentially prosecute criminal rape allegations. More importantly, the most essential constitutional protections such as presumption of innocence, right to representation, cross-examination of witness, due process, etc., cannot, and should not, be sacrificed simply to tilt the scales of justice in favor of preferred social outcomes.

In fact, many universities are now being sued because of the ridiculous standards and procedures demanded by the Department of Education, as as these cases progress, the universities are losing badly or settling for large sums, often paid from the public purse.