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Monday, April 10, 2006

The Latest on the Duke University Rape Accusal

I am interested in this Duke situation only insofar as it has shown to a newly wide audience the ill that can result from the extrajudicial procedures that colleges too often embrace when their students are accused of some wrong, especially in cases of sexual assault, which academia is, unfortunately, eager to politicize. There are deep dangers in having colleges at all involved in guilt- and fact-finding where a court of law is by rights the proper and more able venue for those tasks. All of these problems have been demonstrated in full by the administration of Duke University, which abandoned its students and the lacrosse team at the very first utterance of accusation.

Given this interest, I think it worthwhile to mention that my earlier call to keep faith in the presumption of innocence seems to be panning out. The liberal Talk Left blog reports that the case against the lacrosse players is simply falling apart, and adds: “If the accuser made up the rape claim, the damage she caused to these young players, to the lacrosse team which had its season cancelled, to Duke University and its reputation and to the team’s coach is incalculable.”

UPDATE: And there is no DNA match, either. Duke has a lot of tar on its face.

The Chronicle of Higher Education says it will have more on this tomorrow morning. It would be heartening to see the reporters there tackle colleges’ jump-to-conclusions problem.

Posted on April 10, 2006 11:20 AM. Permalink