Report — LSU ignored sexual assault complaints against football players

A report released in the United States today and released on Monday states that several USL officials were aware of allegations of sexual violence against former deputy Derrius Guis and other former football players and that they had ignored those allegations or rejected the victims’ requests for protection.

The report also mentions three cases where players have been convicted of assault and are allowed to remain on campus after a suspension equivalent to parole.

The report contains details of accusations made by USL tennis player Drake Davis about the attack on a former receiver general, including a statement that the victim’s coach, Mike Sell, had been informed that Davis had hit a woman in the stomach, but had not reported the attack to the school or the Title IX coordinator. The report states that the LSU waited several months to provide information, while Davis continued to attack and strangle them.

In 2018, Davis was arrested on second-degree charges and suspended indefinitely by the team. The warrant states that Davis, who entered the University of the South in October 2019, reportedly struck a woman he had met four times in about 13 months.

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USA Today reports that since Ed Orgeron’s appointment as interim head coach for 2016, at least nine players, including Gis and Davis, have been reported to the police for sexual misconduct and dating violence. Later Orgeron was promoted to head coach and last season he led the team to the national championship.

When he read a prepared statement at the beginning of his weekly press conference on Monday afternoon, Orgeron said he wanted to refer to the USA Today article.

First of all, I would like to say that we must support and protect the victims of all kinds of violence and sexual abuse, according to Mr Orgeron. Neither our society, nor this campus, nor our football program has room for such behaviour. If an indictment is filed, we have a legal and moral obligation to report it to the office of the university under Title IX to ensure that the proceedings are properly followed. I have taken appropriate measures in the past and will continue to do so and follow the reporting protocols. I’m sure the university is today attempting to consider our policies and processes when making accusations.

Mr Orgeron concluded his statement by saying that this is all I want to say now. He refused to answer questions about the article.

LSU player Zack von Rosenberg tweeted on Twitter earlier in the day to protect his coach, who has now been removed.

I felt obliged to defend my coach bc, we have met with the team in almost every incident, tweeted von Rosenberg. Most of these players were either expelled or removed from the team. I don’t know all the other details, but what I do know is that my coach would do the right thing. That’s a fact.

We are unwavering in our obligation to respond promptly to all allegations of misconduct, to investigate those allegations fairly and justly, to support the victims of sexual abuse and to protect the privacy of our students in accordance with the law, the U.S. said in a statement to LSU today. Ending sexual violence is an institutional priority and we are constantly working to achieve this goal.

In his statement, LSU Acting President Tom Galligan wrote that the university takes all reports of sexual violence or abuse seriously and noted that the school investigates each of these cases and seeks to support the victims.

But we’re not perfect, and we can and we will do better, he wrote. One case of sexual abuse or violence is too many.

According to Galligan, LSU hired the independent law firm Husch Blackwell to review the university’s Title IX policies and procedures. It also urged all victims of abuse who did not report the abuse or who did and who feel that the complaints were abused to contact the DLSU’s office under Section IX.

USA Today has already reported allegations against Mr. Guis, who was accused of being raped by two former LSU students. Guis was killed on the 7th. August was released by the Washington soccer team after he was arrested in Virginia on three separate charges of domestic violence.

According to the latest report, the USL has recognised formal disciplinary sanctions for two of the nine athletes accused of sexual misconduct and dating violence: Davis and quarterback Peter Parrish.

Parris was indicted earlier this year for raping a woman outside a bar and was suspended indefinitely. In August Parrish announced his transfer to Memphis.

LSU lawyer Johanna Posada today confirmed to USA that four athletes are not disciplined: Grant Delpit, who was accused of recording a woman having sex without her knowledge and who shared the video with others, also fled to Tae Provens, linebacker Jacob Phillips and Tight End Zack Schaeffer, who were all accused of rape.