The word emergency comes from the Latin “emerge” – bring to light. College and university policies for the emergency transport of students in danger of being alcohol poisoned could use a dose of light and transparency….
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Res ipsa loquitur is a common legal doctrine referred to in negligence cases that might be understood as why you are liable even when you didn’t do anything. “Res ips” – relies on your exclusive control…
Two recent high-profile military prosecutions for sexual assault highlight problems with the military sexual assault system. The military cases also hold a mirror up to campus sexual assault prosecution systems. The reflection reveals troubling parallels and…
The March 7 Metro article “Suit fights new law on campus sex crimes” highlighted but one problem with colleges and universities seeking to play cop, prosecutor, defense counsel, judge and jury: The schools can’t even figure out...
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The DC City Council’s efforts to decriminalize marijuana opens a Pandora’s box for schools and universities who will need to reconcile their student conduct codes. [1] Or not. So which college or university will pioneer the...
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Imagine you are tasked with designing a system for determining whether violations of the law have occurred. You might ask yourself the question of who should make these determinations about the future of community members. And…
No, it doesn’t matter that you were off-campus. It may not even matter if you were out of the country. DC Student defense clients and their families often can’t believe that an alleged conduct violation occurring...
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Approaching the 12-hour mark of a student conduct hearing at a major university I am reminded of lyrics from a Maroon Five song (“cross my heart and hope to die” from “One More Night”) as I…
College students facing both criminal prosecution and university prosecution may feel that they are victims of double-jeopardy because they are prosecuted twice for the same offense. And the Fifth Amendment of the Constitution indeed forbids any…
Students facing conduct and academic honor code violations lack the most basic tool by which to defend themselves: subpoena power. [1] One of the worst aspects of the student defense system is that the accused lacks…
“It Isn’t mine.” Uttering this phrase to the police when they have found you in close proximity to anything: drugs, alcohol, or violence – only shows you don’t understand the legal principle of constructive possession. Constructive…
When it comes to academic honor code violations, colleges and universities must be fans of the legendary frontier jurist – Judge Roy Bean [1] – who supposedly told a defendant: “You’ll get a fair trial followed…
So justice is easy but truth is hard. [1] It’s hard to tell what’s true. The boy/girl who says you’re the one. The missing cookie from the jar. The bloody knife by the body. But it’s…
Your university and college don’t want you to hire a lawyer. Many student discipline codes and student conduct codes forbid lawyers from speaking at a student conduct proceeding. Other universities and colleges even forbid the accused…
On a Halloween twenty years ago, the actor River Phoenix died outside Johnny Depp’s The Viper Room nightclub in Los Angeles, convulsing on the sidewalk from an overdose of drugs. As recounted in a recent biography, he…
