Student says she was raped by football player but university 'has done nothing'

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/sep/13/north-carolina-university-rape-football-player

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A magistrate has issued an arrest warrant for a North Carolina football player accused of sexual battery and assault on a female student in February.

The warrant issued Tuesday accuses Allen Artis, a 21-year-old junior linebacker from Marietta, Georgia, of two misdemeanors against University of North Carolina (UNC) at Chapel Hill sophomore Delaney Robinson.

The warrant says he had sex with her while she was “mentally incapacitated and physically helpless”.

The Guardian typically does not identify alleged victims of sexual assault, but Robinson has chosen to come forward and give up her anonymity, holding a news conference on Tuesday to say she filed for the misdemeanor charges after police and prosecutors indicated there was not enough evidence to pursue felony charges.

Her lawyer says campus police botched questioning and the handling of a rape test. Orange County district attorney Jim Woodall says the case is still pending.

At her press conference, Robinson criticized the university for the handling of the rape allegation.

Flanked by her father and attorney, she said the university’s investigators interrogated her like a suspect after she reported that she was raped, and laughed with her alleged rapist when they interviewed him.

“I did everything a rape victim is supposed to do,” she said. “I reported it. I allowed the rape kit to be taken. I gave a statement. I cooperated with law enforcement and the Title IX office [which handles complaints of discrimination, including gender and sexual assault]. But six months later, the university has done nothing.”

Robinson, a pre-business student, said she was raped in an apartment on the campus athletic village on Valentine’s Day of this year, when she was 18.

The rape reportedly took place when Delaney was left alone with Artis after coming back to campus from a party with a group of friends. The UNC linebacker allegedly raped her while she was incapacitated.

“Yes, I was drinking that night on Valentine’s Day,” she said on Tuesday. “I’m underage, and I take responsibility for that. But that doesn’t give anyone the right to violate me. I did not deserve to be raped.”

The next morning she went to hospital and reported the rape, and a physical exam showed “vaginal injuries consistent with blunt-force trauma and bruising consistent with a physical assault”, according to her attorney Denise Branch. During the press conference, Branch also held up pictures of Robinson’s bruised neck.

After reporting the case, Robinson said campus police interrogated her like a suspect, questioning her sexual past and whether she led Artis on. Branch and Robinson were allowed to watch Artis’s interrogation after the university concluded its investigation, which they said showed Artis laughing with interrogators and the investigators telling him: “Don’t sweat it.”

According to Branch, an assistant to the local district attorney, also refused to prosecute Artis because they said “unconsciousness is rape, blackout drunk is not rape”.

“Therefore, because my client did not drink to the point of unconsciousness before she was raped, the Orange County district attorney has declined to prosecute this case,” Branch said.

However, the DA, Jim Woodall, told WRAL-TV the case remains an open and active investigation and no decision had been made on whether to file charges against Artis.

“I think it’s a case where there’s some genuine hurdles to overcome,” Woodall said. “You have to be very careful and deliberate. You never want someone accused unless there’s proof beyond a reasonable doubt.”

Robinson requested “self-sworn” warrants from a magistrate for Artis to be arrested on charges of misdemeanor assault on a female and misdemeanor sexual battery. Under North Carolina law, a citizen may request a warrant from a judge, provided that they have probable cause that a crime was committed. The warrant was issued on Tuesday, Branch said. It is not known if Artis is in custody or has been arrested.

The vice-chancellor of communications and public affairs at UNC, Joel Curran, said that the university could not discuss the case due to federal privacy laws.

“These matters are complex and often involve multiple agencies including law enforcement. While the University always tries to complete an investigation as quickly as possible, our priority is to ensure that the factual investigations are complete and conducted in a fair and thorough manner,” Curran said in a statement.

The university has had issues with sexual assault allegations in the past and completely revamped its Title IX office after students filed a complaint with the Board of Education against the university for its handling of these cases.

However, Branch said the university had failed to abide by its own guidelines.

“The university failed either by being uninformed or by completely disregarding the new Title IX guidelines that they so publicly pronounced being put in place,” she said.