Editor’s Note: This article contains reference to sexual misconduct.
When an individual decides to report their assailant, the process that follows can be challenging, even dangerous, for the victim. It is a courageous act, one that will hopefully mean the assailant won’t be able to repeat their crimes. Due process of law is disputed and convoluted. Out of every 1,000 sexual assault perpetrators, only 25 will be incarcerated.
On campus, these cases are handled by the office of student conduct. REG 04.25.02 of the Equal Opportunity and Nondiscrimination Policy outlines the procedural regulations in handling Title IX violations. These regulations fall under the Code of Student Conduct and the jurisdiction of the Office of Equal Opportunity.
Section 4.2 of REG 04.25.08 states that “This regulation applies when (1) NC State has Actual Knowledge of Title IX Sexual Harassment; (2) the Title IX Sexual Harassment occurred within NC State’s Education Programs or Activities; and (3) the Title IX Sexual Harassment is against a person in the United States.”
An individual who has had their Title IX rights violated may file a complaint with the Office of Equal Opportunity or an Equal Opportunity and Equity investigator. Anonymous reports may be submitted. However, NC State says “[their] ability to respond or take further action from an anonymous report may be impacted by the level of information available about the incident or the individuals involved.”
The regulations for resolving Title IX complaints are similar to measures taken by police. Respondents are permitted legal representation and face the same “innocent until proven guilty” status as any person accused of a crime in this country.
The standard for guilt is even lower than that of a criminal trial. The conduct board only requires a preponderance of evidence rather than beyond reasonable doubt.
Unlike criminal proceedings, however, the accused is not automatically removed from their peers during the resolution process. Section 5.7 of REG 04.25.02 states that “in appropriate circumstances, NC State may place an employee on administrative leave with pay — or may place a student on interim suspension during the Complaint Resolution Process.”
There is a measure prohibiting questions about the complainants’ prior sexual behavior. However, respondents are given the opportunity to submit questions to be asked during investigative hearings.
In this instance, respondents are permitted to call upon the complainants’ sexuality so long as “they are offered to prove that someone other than the Respondent committed the alleged conduct or they concern specific incidents of the Complainant’s prior sexual behavior with respect to the Respondent and are offered to prove consent.”
This policy is concerning, as respondents may take advantage and use this opportunity to exploit personal details of the individual accusing them. Not to mention it directly contradicts Section 2.4 of the same regulation which states “prior consensual conduct between the Parties does not itself demonstrate or imply consent to current or future acts.”
Regarding the removal of persons accused of Title IX violation, serious disciplinary action can be avoided through means of a facilitated resolution. Section 7.2 of REG 04.25.02 defines a facilitated resolution as “an informal process resulting in an informed voluntary agreement between the Parties and NC State to resolve a Complaint utilizing strategies such as educational interventions or other restorative principles to address the concern, prevent its recurrence, and/or restore the community.”
“The facilitated resolution process allows the parties an opportunity to resolve the issue and is intended to be educational in nature.”
In the case of a facilitated resolution, the complainant is obviously aware of the outcome, and in cases resulting in a complete investigation process, complainants are still notified of the decision to discipline or absolve the respondent.
Other students, however, are not given any knowledge of the outcome when it is determined that an individual did indeed commit an act that violates Title IX. Respondents, unless expelled, are free to wander campus as they please.
This is not the case in criminal proceedings. Once an individual has been convicted of a sexual crime, they are put on an offender’s list, greatly reducing their ability to work and live according to their preferences. This practice is controversial, but it undoubtedly keeps members of our community, at the very least, aware of their environment.
In 2023, former NC State football player Joshua Pierre-Louis posted on social media that he had received an offer to return to the team. Pierre-Louis was suspended from the team in 2022 after he was found responsible for two violations of sexual misconduct, although head coach Dave Doeren did not disclose the reason for the suspension and neither did NC State Athletics when asked for comment in 2023.
Despite the outcome of the disciplinary process, the University was allegedly willing to welcome Pierre-Louis back to campus, although he did not ultimately return to NC State.
You may very well be sitting next to a sexual offender in your lecture hall and have no idea. This isn’t intended to fear-monger or create an anti-social fear of your peers, though one may not have to be so paranoid if they could rely on administrators to ensure our campus was perpetrator-free.
