USA Today: After alleged rape by Michigan athlete, a woman’s death and a mom’s search for answers

[Robert Faygo]

Article here:

https://www.usatoday.com/in-depth/news/ ... 258929002/

One big thing I learned from this article that I didn't know before:

Federal Title IX regulations adopted by the U.S. Department of Education in 2020 also forbid coaches from disciplining players without a finding of fault in a disciplinary proceeding.

This story is heartbreaking (of course, otherwise why would someone write about it). Such a complicated situation with the drug issues and delayed reporting.

I wonder though - have the 2020 Title IX regulations resulted in giving a free pass of sorts to coaches and an incentive for those responsible for law and Title IX enforcement a reason to not pursue disciplinary hearings? Seems like something that needs revisited.

[MWmetalhead]

Law enforcement dropped the ball here.

Non-investigation of rapes is hardly limited to college campuses. Look at Wayne County. Massive backlog of uninvestigated rapes, and in many cases, unprocessed rape kits.

[Robert Faygo]

I re-read the article. It's tough to place blame on law enforcement.

The same day, Lee told Seney she did not have a “cooperative witness,” the report shows, as the friend “did not want to move forward with a criminal complaint.”

Without a statement from Quinn, Theil said prosecutors might have filed criminal charges if there were a witness or video. But the friend who was with her that night had told police that she did not see any assault.

Those statements would make virtually any prosecutor run away from the thought that there would be a case that could lead to a conviction for anything at all. It also explains why there weren't any further interviews. Law enforcement had nowhere to go without the friend that was also present giving them something to work with.

When it comes to someone other than her family and friends having the chance to intervene in a meaningful and timely fashion to get justice for this young women, I'd argue that the University of Dayton is more culpable than any administrator or investigator at U-M or the AAPD. Administrators at Dayton knew in 2019 something was up and seemed to do the bare minimum about it. Did Dayton reach out to U-M or the AAPD in 2019 to possibly pursue an investigation of the football players? That's a big missing piece in the story.

[MWmetalhead]

I'm referring to investigation by law enforcement as opposed to prosecutorial discretion.

I definitely agree there are numerous unanswered questions and possible credibility issues with potential witnesses.

[Robert Faygo]

I'm referring to investigation by law enforcement as opposed to prosecutorial discretion.

I definitely agree there are numerous unanswered questions and possible credibility issues with potential witnesses.

What are your expectations when your best and only witness says they didn't see an assault and is not pressing charges? Real life isn't like "Law & Order" or "A Few Good Men" where the perps just give themselves up.