Georgia Bill Would Require Universities to Hand Over Rape Investigations to the Police
Supporters of the bill say current rules infringe on students' due process rights.


Georgia House Bill 51 aims to stop universities from conducting their own investigations into felonies, including sexual assault, instead requiring them to have law enforcement take charge. The Atlanta Journal Constitution reports that the bill, which was sponsored by Rep. Earl Ehrhart (R–Powder Springs) in January, passed out of a state House panel last week.
The bill explicitly states that "every official or employee of a post-secondary institution in this state who receives information which would lead such individual to believe that a crime which is a felony under the laws of this state has been committed by or against a student of such post-secondary institution or was committed in or on property owned, leased, or operated by such post-secondary institution shall promptly report such crime to the appropriate law enforcement agency." It further prohibits universities from taking matters into their own hands and punishing students accused of a felony.
"I want to treat these crimes with the seriousness they deserve," Ehrhart told the AJC. "But I am not going to sacrifice due process to get there." Last year, he filed a lawsuit against the federal government, arguing that certain Department of Education policies are unconstitutional.
One of those policies is a 2011 rule saying that under Title IX, colleges and universities have to investigate and punish instances of sex discrimination, including allegations of rape. But critics, including Reason Associate Editor Robby Soave, point out that the low standard of evidence being pushed by the department's Office for Civil Rights (OCR) amounts to a violation of due process protections for accused students. "It's not about finding the truth, or administering justice," Soave wrote in a recent post. "The purpose of the guidance is to make it more likely that accused students are found responsible, whether or not they have done anything wrong. OCR has tipped the scales in favor of alleged victims, because the lives of the accused matter less than the lives of the accusers."
Opponents of H.B. 51 contend the bill threatens students' safety. Zoë Taylor, a senior at Williams College and the president of the Sexual Wellness Advocacy Network, penned a letter that was published on the AJC's "Get Schooled" blog. "It would limit schools' abilities to secure their own campuses, placing investigations in the hands of the legal system which notoriously mishandles cases of rape and sexual assault and fails in its due process," she said of the bill. "Under the guise of liberty, this law would obstruct justice and safety for survivors of rape and sexual assault."
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"But...but...they'll require evidence! Gasp! Those evil cis hetero shitlords!"
Bill Crosby. Totally guilty. Bill Clinton. Never proven. Frat boy. Totally guilty.
It's all right there in the prog guide to evidencey hand book.
Crosby is totally guilty, he knew he gave them lesbians his demon seed.
I am flabbergasted that this is not already the way it should be...
It's not clear to me why a crime was ever under the purview of a university.
Arguably this is could come under the heading of violations of the honor code and a violation of contract between the student and university, allowing the university to expel the student.
Any administrator who hears 'he raped me' and immediately thinks
'oh shit! that's totally an honor code violation! I'd better get the ombudsman'
instead of
'ok let's call the cops'
is a fucking idiot
^^^Exactly
They usually think "find out if it was a sports star or school employee before deciding who to call."
http://guiltypleaproblem.org/#banks
Banks was roped into pleading guilty for rape with nothing but the girl's accusation. He served five years of his sentence before she admitted to him that she had lied. He secretly taped her admission and the Innocence Project helped clear him. Meanwhile his mom sold her house and car to pay for his legal fees.
The Innocence Project is part of the Patriarchy, like duh.
It should really be the "Not Proven Project", since, say, someone else's DNA at a crime scene doesn't mean you weren't there also.
Thus "Innocent until proven guilty".
Oh, come on. Yes, there's a strong element of self-rightiousness in the Innocence Project. OTOH, they have exposed a systemic problem with scalp-hunting prosecutors who are perfectly willing to break the rules to get a conviction, even where there's no real basis for one. Are the people the IP is getting out of prison so many choirboys? No. That is 't the point.
Also, I can't help but notice that you chose to make your snide remark in response to a case where there seems to be very litttle question that the man convicted was innocent.
Tragic, but that was high school, not college.
Actually, in my experience (late Father was a college professor) you can shorten that to "Any administrator is a fucking idiot"
Jerry Sandusky should have called for a Title IX tribunal.
Because "due process" and "presumption of innocence until proven guilty" are tools of oppression used by the cis-hetero normative patriarchy. Or some such horseshit.
I just don't get it. There are so many countries, including western countries, they could go to that favor their "guilty until proven innocent" stance. Why do they have to fuck up one of the few countries that favors due process?
It's an international revolution, comrade. They're fighting the good fight to modernize even backwards America.
But they don't LIKE having to face where their theories lead!
What other alleged crimes should not be not be handled by the police, prosecutors, and courts but investigated, adjudged and punished by some other institution?
Crimethink?
The people's tribunal will let you know, comrade.
The people's tribunal will let you know at your sentencing, comrade.
Well, as long as letting you know doesn't risk causing additional trauma for your accuser.
The tribunal is not in the business of telling you what you're being sentenced for. You know. You should have confessed your crimes to your local political officer, when you had the chance.
Maybe this doesn't end until some frat gets the roster for SWAN, invites them to a party and systematically accuses each member of rape.
If Judge Judy is any indication, borrowing money from your girlfriend and not paying it back.
All of them, presumably. So long as the feminazis are in charge of said institution.
which notoriously mishandles cases of rape and sexual assault and fails in its due process
As opposed to the excellent record of a university auto de fe process?
Better watch out Soave, The Intern's stealing your gig, and she's doing a better job at it. If she has nice hair you're fucked.
She's going for Snackford's alt text title, too. Gillespsie will be in trouble when she starts writing about pointless Twitter-related issues.
I checked her fb. She's got nice hair - but not Soave level hair. Few have that.
I am willing to accept a downgrade in hair quality for an upgrade in actual reporting.
Robby's hair has failed to attract any women to the boards so he can GTFO as far as I'm concerned. What should I care about his hair? It's not like it's a leather jacket.
Again, excellent alt text.
It would limit schools' abilities to secure their own campuses, placing investigations in the hands of the legal system which notoriously mishandles cases of rape and sexual assault and fails in its due process," she said of the bill. "Under the guise of liberty, this law would obstruct justice and safety for survivors of rape and sexual assault."
I too think we should take all legal advice from college seniors.
you really have to be a fucking idiot if you think a college kangaroo court offers due process and our legal system does not. You also have to be a fucking idiot if you think "safety" means expelling a rapist and not putting them in jail.
You think she's referring to due process for the accused? How quaint. She means due process for victims, which, of course, is violated every time something doesn't go exactly how the victim wants.
'alleged' victim
No, no. These days the accuser is always 100% right. Everything happened just the way it was told. Even if it wasn't, she's still a victim because ... because ... because she just is and someone is to blame for it..
Nothing alleged about it! If the victim says an assault happened, an assault happened. Why do you oppose due process for victims?
Dude, if they have to go to court, she might get accused of lying. That's totes triggering and a human rights violation.
I wish progs were honest - this is nothing more then punishing male students. If a male student was really dangerous, that should be handed over to the police. A rapist shouldn't be expelled from school, they should be in jail.
No, they know that's no good because of things like evidence, so they come up with these kangaroo courts thats are a travesty for justice, because all they want is vengeance, not justice.
They want social justice. Fucking over the innocent is how they execute it, because in their insane world, you are not innocent if you belong to a certain class.
Exactly. Social justice is a synonym for collective guilt.
tell these fucking cultists to go off themselves. I don't believe in original sin, and there is a fucking separation of church and state
Social justice is the opposite of actual justice.
"I wish progs were honest - this is nothing more then punishing male students." This is basically an argument that I attempt to use, although to no success. These "proceedings" are themselves in violation of Title IX, which states in it's one sentence wisdom that, "...on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity...". These witch hunts are in fact an activity on a college campus, and if the male accused is not allowed to present evidence, call witness, etc while the female accuser is allowed to, he has been excluded from participation and denied the benefits of said activity.
They are more dishonest than Hitler. I'm serious. Hitler told the world in Mein Kampfy Chair exactly what evil he planned to do.
And the kicker is that if rape took place, the college tribunal will almost certainly taint the case so thoroughly that a conviction in actual court will be impossible. So such tribunals ensure that the innocent accused suffer needlessly while the guilty accused go free.
"Under the guise of liberty." Does that mean other than your normal authoritarian police boot licker "that damn constitution won't let us lock these people, who we clearly know are criminals, in jail! Just because we have no proof doesn't mean they shouldn't be locked up!"
Campus rape concerns would be addressed if Georgia lowered the legal carry age to 17 from 21 and legalized campus carry.
But no, that would require acknowledging some iota of personal responsibility.
A couple of things:
1. Why are these special snowflakes always named "Zoe?" That's a name that needs to be phased out.
2. I suspect that what she really means by "mishandles cases of rape and sexual assault" is "doesn't always find the male guilty, AND THAT'S NOT OK."
3. I don't think snowflake knows what the word "justice" actually means.
1. Why are these special snowflakes always named "Zoe?"
And what do you have against the umlaut?
Cultural appropriation!!! The half of me that is German is highly offended.
And why are butlers always named Geeves?
Not sure. I think it's because Steven Fry created an early search engine with that name.
It's not an umlaut; it's a di?resis mark.
You leave Zoe Bell out of this.
of the legal system which notoriously mishandles cases of rape and sexual assault and fails in its due process,
lol
That's a name that needs to be phased out.
Obviously not a Firefly fan.
Um, you just described how universities handle the matter.
There goes that liberty again, obstructing justice and safety. She sounds like a stereotypical Republican.
I don't understand what this headline has to do with smearing Trump.
IT'S ALL BETSY DEVOS'S FAULT
These are the headlines over the last three hours:
"Even John Yoo Is Offended by Trump's Broad View of Executive Power"
"Federal Infrastructure Spending Is a Bad Deal: New at Reason" (picture of Trump)
"Trump's Leaked Draft Proposal to Modify Obamacare May Be Illegal"
"Trump's Not Helping His Own Credibility: New at Reason"
"Critiquing Trump's First War on Terror Raid? That's 'Emboldening the Enemy.'"
"Georgia Bill Would Require Universities to Hand Over Rape Investigations to the Police"
One of these things is not like the other.
Lindsay, did you check your email this morning? You may have missed a memo.
Intern gets all the shit jobs 🙁
She's not ready for the Big Show
Poor Trump!
Poor us!
^This. They can shit on Trump all they like, but I for one would like to read about a variety of libertarian issues beyond those related to the Grand Poobah.
See? This is how the professionals do it =
The White House is really splitting hairs on Neil Gorsuch's rebuke of President Trump - Washington Post
You try and downplay the hysteria of the media over an offhand remark pried out of the SC nominee, and you're "splitting hairs"
Jesus, next they'll be demanding that terms like "White Nationalist" or "Fascist" actually *mean something*. How is a free press supposed to operate in an environment like that??
Yes, I noticed that, it seemed a little fraught.
NEEDZ MOR TRUMP
But what will become of the people who hold these extra-judicial kangaroo courts?
They'll just wander the streets, broken and forgotten, until they finally die from starvation or freeze to death.
Either that, or they'll just transfer them to marketing.
The latest outrage.
Also, I'm glad the media have gone back to calling everything that happens under the executive "The Trump Administration". It's welcome. Because since 2008, anything bad that happened just tended to give the name of the agency involved.
the rusty patched bumblebee
That was my nickname in college.
?
Not the "Crusty Patched Bumblebee"?
I was known for my potent stinger.
^Confirmed from the gay bar.
Nah, it was because of your strikingly striped pelt and your predilection for biting holes in flowers.
TRUMP TO BEES: BUZZ OFF
I think they should still be able to get it on so long as they take two off.
'He's retroactively responsible for colony collapse disorder!'
Trump doesn't understand how bumblebees can fly with their tiny wings ? and it frightens him.
BEES!!! NOT THE BEES!!!
/Nic Cage or environut?
How on earth are you going to expel students when the cops tell you that buyer's remorse isn't rape?
Is it wrong I imagined Robby telling her "Make sure you quote me and link to my article."
"I'm not going to do that."
*Robby flips his hair while anime sparkles float around him in slow motion*
"S..so bishie! I'll do it, Soave-san!"
"Soave-senpai", you mean.
That's Soave-sama to you, thank you very much.
Senpai works too.
I like to think that Robby is obnoxious enough to demand san, but realizes that sama is taking it too far.
"That's one of the few I've written lately that won't make the commentariat gather pitchforks and torches. Trust me."
Is it wrong that i hope she's his replacement?
No!!!
I was thinking maybe a "Help find a replacement for Robby" kickstarter campaign might help.
"One of those policies is a 2011 rule saying that under Title IX, colleges and universities have to investigate and punish instances of sex discrimination, including allegations of rape."
So, here's a question: Why is this okay with Title IX, but not with sanctuary cities?
Take the University of Georgia, state college, I believe it's employees are public employees of the state of Georgia
One of the main arguments against the government punishing sanctuary cities for refusing to check immigration status is that it's wrong for the federal government to commandeer state law enforcement to enforce federal law.
Meanwhile, the Department of Education is commandeering state employees at public universities to enforce Title IX--which is federal law?
Shitlord!
I'll take that as a compliment.
And that's "Mr. Shitlord" to progressives!
redundant, its a given that a shitlord is male. unless its a woman who is not on the leftist plantation. like Betsy Davos
They're not law enforcement, they're employees of a federally-funded institution.
That makes it even more of a contradiction with the sanctuary city argument if state university employees aren't even law enforcement and they're being compelled by the Department of Education to enforce federal law.
Everyone should enforce good laws.
No one should enforce bad ones.
I'm not sure how the logic could get any more simple.
or was committed in or on property owned, leased, or operated by such post-secondary institution
Literally, I see what you did there!
"Under the guise of liberty, this law.....
No, you fucking moron, it isn't under the guise of liberty. It is under liberty. Period. Full fucking stop. The presumption of innocence, the right to face one's accuser and the rule of law are what define a free country. And a drooling imbecile like you might not be able to understand it, but in a world of an "oppressive patriarchy" getting rid of those things are exactly the last thing you'd want to fucking do.
If it was good enough for Magna Carta, it should be good enough for Magna Cum Laude!
This is going to turn out bad. The accuser/alleged victim should report it to the police. Systems where you're forced to report on behalf of a third party often turn out bad.
Right, especially when it explicitly encourages the third party to report on behalf of university property for having been raped upon.
I get the intent, but they really ended up with something akin to the worst possible implementation of a Good Samaritan Law.
It would limit schools' abilities to secure their own campuses, placing investigations in the hands of the legal system which notoriously mishandles cases of rape and sexual assault and fails in its due process...
In other words, law enforcement won't brook sit-ins or other petulant group tantrums that attempt to default justice for the woman.
Dude process?
Come on, Reason, it would have been easy to work an attack on Trump into this post, but you couldn't even make the effort. Disappointing.
Sad, even
Will Trump do nothing to stop campus rape and protect the due process rights of all students?
Say, are faculty subject to these kangaroo courts?
There must still be bugs to work out in the auto-add algorithm.
The bill explicitly states that "every official or employee of a post-secondary institution in this state who receives information which would lead such individual to believe that a crime which is a felony under the laws of this state has been committed by or against a student of such post-secondary institution or was committed in or on property owned, leased, or operated by such post-secondary institution shall promptly report such crime to the appropriate law enforcement agency." It further prohibits universities from taking matters into their own hands and punishing students accused of a felony.
Alright, as long as ? in the name of investigating rape allegations ? they don't accidentally do away with mascot-theft and other slapstick (but wholly felonious) campus pranks!
Save the panty raid!
OT: I accidentally purchased "lite" sausage. Why is there such a product? I mean, I'm still going to eat it, but it's stupid and dumb and stuff.
Was it the same length and girth that you are accustomed to?
"Lite" as opposed to "heavy". Because if you want as opposed to dark, you could do worse than to have some Wei?wurst.
Good article, Lindsay. You could teach Robby a few things.
One fly in the ointment is that the real-world justice system can coerce pleas from innocent people. (there was a link above about this)
I once heard a judge complain that, on the one hand, there were people who said plea bargains were too soft on the guilty, and, on the other hand, there were people who said plea bargains were coercive to the innocent. He seemed to see these criticisms as mutually exclusive, not complementary.
If you're guilty, a plea bargain will probably give you less punishment than you deserve.
If you're *not* guilty, then a plea bargain will give you *more* punishment than you deserve, because "some" is more than "none."
"Opponents of H.B. 51 contend the bill threatens students' safety." One could say the same thing about ALL court proceedings. That people are not locked up until convicted is the way things are. It would be much quicker and easier I guess to simply lynch those accused of murder or other crimes, and sometimes that is what people have done, but we prefer that lynchings not be the standard procedure.
The reason it is called a witch hunt is because among all those killed in the glory days of witch burning there were no actual witches, since real witches don't exist. QED The fact that many of the campus cases are drunken hookups where the girl could have easily left the boy's dorm room or called for help suggests that most of these are not real rapes any more than burned witches were real witches, especially when complaints don't happen for a year or until after they break up. Failed relationships are not rape.