MSU calls woman's claim of 2015 rape by basketball players 'untrue'
(WJBK) - After a woman has come forward claiming Michigan State University mishandled her claims of sexual assault in 2015, the school is firing back.
The alleged assault involved a female student who claimed that she after meeting some basketball team members at Harper's Bar in East Lansing, she went to an off-campus apartment and raped by three players after she was possibly drugged with something in her drink.
She claims that the Michigan State Counseling Center staff pressured her into not reporting the rape to police. It was only in the wake of the Larry Nassar case and the Me Too movement that her attorney said she felt empowered to come forward.
A statement by the school was released Wednesday. It says:
"Late Monday afternoon, Apr. 9, 2018, MSU was notified that a Jane Doe filed a lawsuit against the university and “Unidentified Roes” (employees or counselors of the MSU Counseling Center) claiming that she was raped by three unnamed MSU athletes and, when she sought help, the university convinced her not to take her case to the authorities. The media has taken these allegations about MSU’s response to her assault as established fact. Unfortunately, they are untrue.
"Here are the facts:
- "We have confirmed that, in April 2015, Jane Doe did visit MSU Counseling Center and that our records show that appropriate care and relevant information for a rape victim was provided to the student. We have not found any evidence or indication that she was discouraged in any way to make a Title IX complaint or a complaint to the police department. On the contrary, the student said she was then too distraught to discuss her circumstances. The counselor also suggested she visit the Sexual Assault Program unit on campus.
- "In February 2016, Jane Does visited the Sexual Assault Program unit to receive additional services. She was provided appropriate services, including group counseling sessions, participating in a consultation with a sexual assault advocate, and scheduling an initial appointment with a sexual assault program therapist (an appointment which she did not appear for).
- "In October 2015, Jane Doe’s father contacted her academic advisor to discuss concerns over academic performance. Through that conversation, the advisor learned about the alleged sexual assault. Academic advisors are mandatory reporters under MSU’s policies and the academic advisor promptly took the appropriate step of notifying the MSU Police Department about the potential assault.
- "The MSUPD Special Victims Unit took the report seriously and tried to reach Jane Doe to start the investigation and gather more information, but Jane Doe did not respond to their outreach. An informational email was sent to her that outlined resources available to her, including Title IX information, options to contact the Office of Institutional Equity and relevant counseling services.
- "Jane Doe never revealed the names of her alleged assailants nor, until she filed her lawsuit, did she publicly assert that an assault had occurred. To date, she has yet to exercise her right to make a Title IX complaint or contact the MSUPD or respond to the effort of the Special Victims Unit to learn information about the assault her father brought to the academic advisor’s attention.
- "Any information shared during meetings with MSU counseling and psychiatric services is private and confidential. When attempting to investigate the issue, MSUPD did not have names or any information about possible assailants as Jane Doe never responded to their inquiry. At no point was MSU Athletics Department or the Basketball Program or Head Basketball Coach aware of or notified of the existence of a Jane Doe’s sexual assault allegation."
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Attorney for woman suing for alleged MSU basketball rape talks about case
Woman's lawsuit: 3 Michigan State basketball players raped her in 2015
Michigan State students march for change on campus
Message from the Interim President
“We are deeply saddened when any student comes to us as the result of a sexual assault. For the unfortunate cases where it does happen, MSU has the resources tools and expertise to respond. These resources are available to every member of the community, 24-7, no exceptions,” said MSU Interim President John Engler.