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Baylor Rape Controversy More Evidence Colleges Unequipped to Decide Sexual Assault Cases
Baylor University鈥檚 football player Sam Ukwuachu, who was later convicted of rape in a criminal proceeding using the customary 鈥渂eyond a reasonable doubt鈥 standard of proof, gives us a chance to reiterate 果冻传媒app官方鈥檚 position that police and actual courts of law鈥斺攕hould be investigating and adjudicating these serious crimes.
Despite the fact that it would use only a low, 鈥減reponderance of the evidence鈥 standard to determine his guilt, Baylor said it still didn鈥檛 have against Ukwuachu, who was accused of rape by a fellow student athlete.
Reports on what Baylor knew about Ukwuachu include facts relayed in an in-depth feature. The report paints a picture of administrators who, at best, failed to investigate readily available information regarding the assault and Ukwuachu鈥檚 allegedly . At worst, they suggest the administration it knew would render Ukwuachu ineligible to take the field at the university鈥檚 .
Baylor鈥檚 failure to find Ukwuachu responsible for the assault of a freshman on the women鈥檚 soccer team might seem surprising, given the low standard of proof universities must now use to adjudicate allegations of sexual misconduct. To find Ukwuachu guilty, Baylor needed only believe he was more likely guilty than not鈥攊n other words, that there was a 50.01 percent likelihood of guilt. By contrast, a criminal court using much of the same available evidence later convicted Ukwuachu, finding him guilty 鈥渂eyond a reasonable doubt,鈥 correlating to 98 or 99 percent certainty of guilt.
It鈥檚 difficult to say whether Baylor鈥檚 investigation fell flat because of a purposeful, football-fueled cover-up, or because Baylor administrators are unfit to investigate sex crimes. Either way, the fact that the police鈥攅quipped with the training, resources, and public oversight that form the cornerstone of our justice system鈥攚ere able to secure a conviction suggests that professional law enforcement is far better prepared to handle allegations of sexual assault than campus administrators.
That鈥檚 why FIREbelieves not only that police should be investigating these crimes for the benefit of both accused students and alleged victims, but also that schools should . Institutions of higher learning are not equipped to effectively adjudicate serious crimes.
CORRECTION: An earlier version of this article incorrectly stated that police "adjudicat[e]" crimes. Police investigate crimes, and courts adjudicate them. The Torch regrets the error.
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