Seven current or former students at the University of Connecticut have filed a federal lawsuit claiming that the university failed to protect them from sexual assault on campus and did not adequately respond in the aftermath of the assaults. The women, along with civil rights attorney Gloria Allred held a new conference in Hartford to announced the lawsuit. Allred stated that “they are simply tired of seeing women raped and sexually assaulted at the university while the administration shows deliberate indifference and they have joined the ranks of women at many universities across the country that have chosen to fight back.”
In response to the allegations, University of Connecticut President Susan Herbst addressed the media and stated, “It should go without saying that as an institution, and as individuals, we have nothing but heartfelt compassion for any victim of sexual violence, anywhere.” President Herbst admitted that three years ago the university had failed to properly inform one of the women that an alleged perpetrator was back on campus. But President Herbst said that this notification process has since been corrected.
But President Herbst took strong objection to allegations that the university did not respond properly to sexual assaults when they did occur. She continued, “The suggestion that the University of Connecticut, as an institution, would somehow be indifferent to or dismissive of any report of sexual assault is astonishingly misguided and demonstrably untrue. This is so obvious to those of us who work here and deal with these serious and painful issues, that I am stunned that I even must say it, or that any reasonable person would believe otherwise. This is a university that is devoting extraordinary resources toward preventing sexual violence in all its forms; to creating a safe environment for our students; and to providing countless resources for victims of sexual crimes. We do this so that they can receive not only the compassion and care they so desperately need, but the justice these insidious crimes demand, based on the evidence.”