WACO, Texas (AP) _ A woman who reported that she’d been sexually assaulted has
filed a lawsuit against Baylor University, alleging questions she faced from the
university shifted blame away from her attacker toward her.
The lawsuit filed in a Waco federal court on Monday alleges that Baylor’s
response to the attack violated federal Title IX laws against gender
discrimination. That was even though university officials said new policies had
been implemented before the attack in response to a sexual violence scandal that
embroiled the Baylor football program.
Jim Dunnan, a Waco lawyer representing the student, told the Waco
Tribune-Herald, “I think that, unfortunately, it’s an example of how things
still have not changed.” Dunnam and Houston lawyer Chad Dunn jointly represent
10 former students who allege that their sexual assaults weren’t handled
adequately.
This lawsuit alleges the student, who Dunn said still attends Baylor and was
identified in the suit only as “Jane Doe 11,” was attacked in April while she
was a sophomore attending under two scholarships, one athletic and one
need-based. The lawsuit said the student underwent a sexual assault examination
by a nurse and the assault was reported to Waco and university police and
Baylor’s Title IX office. The person she accused told investigators that, aside
from kissing, no sexual activity occurred. The lawsuit says that Baylor police
investigated but filed no charges.