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January 05, 2007
Duke's Troubles Begin
Durham-in-Wonderland reports that the first lawsuit has been filed against Duke University by a former lacrosse player. From the news story:
A former Duke Lacrosse player has filed a lawsuit against the University saying he was failed by an professor because of his membership on the lacrosse team.University faculty across the country may soon have reason to hate the Gang of 88 at Duke University. That group's rush to judgment may have a significant effect on academic freedom in the years to come.Kyle Dowd filed the lawsuit Thursday against against Duke University and visiting associate professor Kim Curtis. Dowd, who graduated with David Evans in May 2006, was not indicted in the rape case but says that Professor Curtis gave him and another lacrosse player in class a failing grade in class as a form of retaliation after the Duke Lacrosse scandal broke. The two players were apparently receiving passing grades until the scandal, and Duke University revised their grades upward months after graduation.
This does not affect the pending sexual offense and kidnapping case against David Evans, Reade Seligmann, and Collin Finnerty. But it is significant in being the first of likely to be many legal and moral hits against Duke University - critics say that Duke failed to stand by its own students as they came under attack by members of the faculty and community.
If this student's case goes forward, and if he's joined by other students who sue Duke University, there is the potential for a legal precedent that would hold university administrators responsible for the actions of their faculty. The Gang of 88 acted with impunity on the Durham campus - Duke University President Richard Brodhead did and said nothing when his faculty rushed to judgment and made slanderous comments against the students accused of the crime.
If administrators and trustees become legally liable for the non-academic actions of faculty, it would eventually lead to a limiting of the freedom of professors to speak out on subjects that do not directly relate to their academic discipline. It may seem far-fetched, but eventually this case and the precedent it sets could lead to a weakening or abandonment of nearly unconditional tenure in the academic world.
Those may not be terrible side effects to the general public, but they would be a seismic shock in the academic world.
Nice job, President Brodhead.
I think Duke University's endowment is about to take a major hit - the civil damages are going to be harsh. In the end, though, I think Richard Brodhead is going to be the fall guy for Duke. Unlike most sacrificial lambs, though, Brodhead will deserve it.
Posted by slublog at January 5, 2007 12:00 AM
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