I received the following information from a source familiar with the circumstances of the hearing and the general hearing process (read here for my previous post on this: http://inkslwc.wordpress.com/2008/03/17/what-ever-happened-to-the-noose-student-at-cmu/):
CMU has kicked the student out until Aug. 1, 2008. The student (a white male senior … not a black guy trying to generate sympathy for “his cause,” as some have suggested)), will take incompletes on his course work and finish them after Aug. 1. He’ll then be allowed to graduate.
At an earlier student disciplinary hearing, the panel wanted to kick him out of school permanently. He appealed that decision, and the appeals panel reduced the penalty.
As you know, the county prosecutor is still weighing whether to bring criminal charges against him. I can’t imagine that he will. Michigan’s ethnic intimidation statute requires that an act be directed at an individual, and, as far as I can see, there was no such thing here. And – unless that intimidation factor is present — it’s not a crime to be a racist or to express racist thoughts.
This really did surprise me. As I indicated in the previous post, it is VERY unlikely that he broke any laws (although what he did was in my eyes wrong – if it wasn’t racist, it was poor judgment in the least, and if it was racist, it’s morally wrong, but legally there’s nothing wrong with being racist).
It wasn’t directed against anybody, and as I pointed out, without a direction of the threat, you can’t prove that there was a threat of FORCE. For instance, (and this simplifies the situation by taking out the implications of nooses in our society), leaving a baseball bat on a desk isn’t a crime, but going into an NAACP event and yelling racist phrases is a hate crime (I know hate crime isn’t a legal term, but it’s easier than saying U.S. Federal Code, Title …).
So, if this information is true, as I expect it is, I am disappointed in CMU’s decision. Even further, I’d like to know what they charged him with, because as I said before, if it was a violent crime (which involves even the threat of violence) that they charged him with, they CAN release the information, as is stated in the Family Education Righs and Privacy Act (FERPA), and I may FOIA (Freedom of Information Act) for it (or if someone a little more legally knowledgeable would like to volunteer, it’d be greatly appreciated).
If Isabella County Prosecutor Larry Burdick doesn’t charge him (which I doubt he will if they’ve waited this long), I think that the student should bring this to court.
Done Ranting,
Ranting Republican
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Tags: African Americans, Central Michigan University, CMU, College, crime, Criminal, Disciplinary Hearing, Engineering and Technology, Family Education Rights and Privacy Act, FERPA, FOIA, Freedom of Information Act, Hate Crimes, Hearing, Isabella County, Larry Burdick, Law, Laws, Lawsuit, Michigan, Mount Pleasant, Noose, Police, Prosecutor, Racism, School, Student, violence
March 22, 2008 at 5:32 AM
You’re not a ranting Republican, you’re a ranting un-American racist. Get out of our country.
March 22, 2008 at 6:20 PM
Racism isn’t a crime. I don’t like what the kid did – but what he did wasn’t illegal – I think it’s obvious in that he hasn’t been charged yet. And it’s my country too.
March 24, 2008 at 10:59 AM
Sounds like this senior had charges rammed through a student court like that Lennox character. I bet he had no rights whatsoever and the whole process was over before he realized it. It’s actually funny because people involving int he hearing process (the Dean of Students and ultimately President Rao) came out and convicted him before the hearing with public comments, but these two administrators were expected to be neutral in the hearing process.
March 24, 2008 at 11:00 AM
Someone should send a FOIA to the county prosecutor, police and FBI as they aren’t bound by student privacy laws.
March 24, 2008 at 12:18 PM
Why don’t you? It sounds like you may actually know what you’re doing when it comes to FOIAing and stuff (and I really don’t).
March 27, 2008 at 3:27 AM
[...] for Noose Student OK, so the Central Michigan Life did a story in response to my recent blog post and I just wanted to keep you updated on the [...]
April 18, 2008 at 9:04 PM
This just shows the arrogance of CMU. The school is a taxpayer-supported university that strives to keep its seedy dealings from the public. First, the harassment of Dennis Lennox and now delaying this kid’s graduation. FERPA prevents them from releasing specific information, but some information should be available to the local media. When a high school student gets expelled, we hear about it in the media. Sometimes we even know the student’s name. At CMU, when someone gets suspended, they find ways to cover it up. They may be breaking other laws in withholding this information. Either way, if I’m a high school student, I think twice about enrolling there. There’s a chance you’ll get secretly shoved out of the picture if you do something politically incorrect.
July 30, 2008 at 2:05 AM
[...] Building back in November. (My previous posts on this subject can be found here, here, here, here, and [...]
September 30, 2008 at 3:58 PM
I hate how lately no one wants to hear other peoples opinions because they are offensive but that is such a crock people (including students) have a right to their opinions even if those opinions are different from mine. If the noose was not a direct threat to a person then let the guy go he has a right to his ideas. I don’t even think there is such a thing as “hate speech” it is just someone who has a different opinion than others and is brave enough to voice it.
September 30, 2008 at 6:14 PM
Jayne, that’s why I changed my opinion on the matter – it wasn’t a direct threat, and thus wasn’t illegal.