In response to the Title IX lawsuit filed against James Madison University

Regarding the lawsuit recently filed against James Madison University, the plaintiff already made the same allegations in the media and in a complaint to the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights. No new allegations are included in this lawsuit that were not raised in other venues previously.

In the time since this case first came to the public’s attention last summer, many in the public now recognize the need to withhold judgment in sexual assault cases where only one side of the story has been presented in the media. Withholding judgment in this case is especially important because the complaint contains mischaracterizations of events, distortions of fact and is without merit.  

To date the university has been prevented from sharing its side of the story due to the constraints of the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA). Now that the plaintiff has filed a civil lawsuit, the university will be at liberty to share the facts and circumstances in the case through the normal channels of litigation in due course. As the university already stated, rest assured that as this process unfolds and is resolved, you will see that JMU handles such serious matters with integrity and compassion.

Finally, the university takes the issue of sexual assault very seriously, and continues to work with its constituent groups in compliance with all federal and state laws in prevention, training, awareness, and support of the members of our community.

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Mar. 6, 2015 @ 1:03 p.m.