
Families Advocating for Campus Equality (FACE), a not for profit organization that advocates for fairness and due process on our college campuses, announces that North Dakota SB 2150, a bill which allows an attorney to participate in disciplinary hearings, is on its way to Governor Jack Dalrymple’s desk for signing. FACE president, Sherry Warner Seefeld, testified on behalf of SB 2150 and was influential in bringing about this important legislation.
SB 2150 is a meaningful and necessary corrective to leveling the playing field for students and organizations facing accusations of a serious nature, including sexual misconduct violations. When the accusation has to do with sexual misconduct, such students and organizations are often considered to be guilty- until-proven-innocent. The recently discredited report of an alleged gang rape at the University of Virginia that resulted in sanctions for all of UVA’s fraternities even after the allegations were debunked is a sobering example of this bias. North Dakota joins North Carolina in permitting the active participation of attorneys, an action that will help level the playing field and mitigate this bias.
It is not uncommon for colleges and universities to grant a single, central office power to investigate, prosecute, and judge serious allegations. Students accused of Title IX violations, for example, face the full weight of punitive consequences: suspension and/or expulsion from their college or university and the life- altering stigma of having been disciplined for sexual misconduct. Without an attorney to actively participate in their defense, such accused students must stand alone to defend themselves. In some cases, the student may also be facing a criminal investigation, a situation rife with significant issues relating to self-incrimination that requires the guidance of experienced counsel.
SB 2150 is an important first step to make disciplinary hearings more aligned with our civil justice system that through hundreds of years of developing, testing and vetting theory and practice, is best trusted to adjudicate serious issues like sexual misconduct with fairness and transparency. #

Families Advocating for Campus Equality – P.O. Box 5448 – Spartanburg SC – 29304-5448 Phone – 701.491.8554
www.facecampusequality.org
