What’s the difference between a Title IX investigation of a potential sexual assault vs a police investigation of the same? Does it hinge on whether the action in question is initially reported to the Campus Police or “regular” Police? What’s the difference in the investigation, due process, etc. If you had a choice, which type investigation would you “prefer”? I keep hearing about the 2 type investigations but don’t understand the fine points of either. Thanks
If the campus police is a real police department, it will go through the usual police and criminal justice system. In such a case, whether the campus police or the city / county police has primary jurisdiction depends on where the incident occurred. If the campus safety department is not a real police department, someone who wants to report an incident to the police needs to contact the city / county police.
A university administrative process would involve reporting to a different entity, with a different process separate from the criminal justice system.
A third avenue is a civil lawsuit.
These are not mutually exclusive. Standards of proof and potential penalties for the accused differ. (So can the competence of any investigation by any third party.)
Title IX investigations and proceedings are relatively informal. The worst outcome possible for the “accused” is being kicked out of college. The accused does not have most of the procedural rights he might have in court, including significantly such things as the right to a qualified, impartial judge, the right to a jury, the right to be represented by counsel, discovery rights against his accuser, the right to be considered innocent unless proven guilty beyond reasonable doubt, and the right to have his counsel cross-examine witnesses and present his own witnesses.
Criminal investigations are handled by the police, and prosecutions are done in court. The accused has many, many more procedural rights, including those listed above, and the police have much more investigative power, too.
The accused can be arrested prior to trial. and may be sent to prison if found guilty.
Civil lawsuits are mostly about money damages, although they can also include protective injunctions. They are carried out by the victim and her family, usually, not public prosecutors. The accused’s procedural rights are not as strong as in a criminal case, but still pretty strong.
It’s also important to point out that the definitions of the proscribed conduct may be significantly different for administrative proceedings, criminal cases, and civil cases. Colleges are able to discipline their students for conduct that may be boorish or offensive but would not be considered criminal, or expose them to pay civil damages. Criminal cases are also significantly affected by discretion on the part of police and prosecutors. They may decide to limit their investigation, or not to proceed with prosecution, based on a judgment that pursuing other matters is a better use of limited public resources, or that the case is too complicated or doubtful to provide an easy victory.
Page 27 of the linked document provides a concise explanation. My own personal view is that it usually makes sense to pursue both. But with the typical college campus case that involves alcohol and “he said she said,” it is pretty unlikely a case will be prosecuted in our criminal justice system absent physical injury, witnesses or video like the Vanderbilt case. Unfortunate but that is the reality.
https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/docs/qa-201404-title-ix.pdf
So if the alleged act were to occur on campus and the campus has a police department, the campus police (as a representative of the school) would make the decision on whether to make this a Title IX or criminal investigation? What would factor into that decision - is there an advantage of 1 or the other approach from a school’s perspective? Different process with lower burden of proof for Title IX so for “he said she said” cases that would typically be preferable? Would it raise any red flags if a school had a large number of Title IX cases to investigate, hence making it preferable for them to take the criminal route?
From a victim’s standpoint, is one or the other approach preferable? Do they have any input in which way it goes?
@HarvestMoon1 both paths could be pursued in parallel? I would assume an act off campus would not qualify for Title IX?
The decision whether to report to the police or to file a Title IX complaint always lies with the alleged victim. You can do one, both or neither. One does not preclude the other. Whether one is preferable over the other depends on the individual and the circumstances. I would advise both.
An off campus act is covered as far as I know but the alleged perpetrator has to be enrolled for the school to have jurisdiction over him/her. If the perpetrator is not enrolled at the school they may still have some notification responsibilities – see page 9 of the document I linked above.
If the alleged victim speaks with the Title IX office regarding possible sexual assault but doesn’t file a complaint, the Title IX office can still proceed with an investigation.
A lawyer is helpful in navigating the Title IX rules even if they can’t represent their client in a Title IX hearing.
When I read this I am confused by how many go the Title IX route and then end up very unhappy with the result (and are now in the press suing their college - there was one yesterday in the news at Columbia). Why don’t they choose to make criminal charges in the first place? If you were secually assaulted in your apartment as a non-college student wouldn’t you go that route?
@kiddie That confuses me as well. That’s one reason I was trying to understand who makes the determination and the differences in processes. I didn’t realize you could pursue both paths at the same time. But then if you’re a traumatized victim (or alleged victim) would one process give you more support than the other? Of course the fact that schools and police departments aren’t equal in their ability to successfully prosecute these type crimes makes it generalize which path might be more appropriate…
Your school’s title ix office should be able to explain the options, but typically colleges will offer two types of administrative proceedings: an informal resolution and a formal resolution process. Only the formal resolution process can result in expulsion.