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

[branford]

121. Your post proves my argument.

First, if a minor (16 years old) claims they were sexually assaulted, mandatory reporting requirements may be applicable and different rules and laws will be at issue. However, even if a minor is the accuser, a defendant does not lose any constitutional rights or protections.

Second, despite your protestations, the law does in fact "magically" recognize a difference when someone turns 18. They are no longer considered a minor under the vast majority of laws (although, as an aside, I agree that the age 21 drinking age has its problems). I am not in the habit of infantalizing adults in order to achieve desired social policy. I believe women to be more than capable of making their own decisions.

Third, and most importantly, you appear to support schools handling sexual assault cases, rather than the criminal or civil justice system, simply because it achieves the results you desire. Simply, sexual assault is a serious felony, and must be treated like one.

If a student is accused of a sexual assault, they are still presumed innocent, and entitled to the full panoply of due process protection. An alleged victim should not be able to end another's academic career and tarnish their reputation for life based on an accusation and without the ability for the accused to adequately defend themselves. You and many others apparently support overall standards far lower than even civil proceedings simply to tip the scales. There is no rape exception to the Constitution.

I expect that the accused students will continue to prevail in lawsuits against the universities that implement the "presumed guilty" policies. I next expect that the accusers will also be sued in greater numbers. Soon enough, these matters will be adjudicated in court, except the alleged victims will be the defendants.