Estimated read time: 3-4 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
AMES, Iowa (AP) — A federal agency is investigating the adequacy of Iowa State University's response to reports of sexual violence against students, including a woman who says she was raped last year, the school confirmed Thursday.
Iowa State officials have turned over thousands of documents to the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Civil Rights about the female student's case and prior reports of sexual violence, school spokesman John McCarroll said.
Iowa State is one of more than 90 colleges being investigated as part of a crackdown on what the Obama administration has called an epidemic of sexual assault on campuses.
It is the first of Iowa's three public universities to face an investigation, which could lead to fines and changes in procedure if investigators find any violations of federal laws that prohibit sex discrimination in education. Drake University, a private school in Des Moines, is also facing an investigation.
An Oct. 15 letter from the federal office to Iowa State University President Steven Leath said it had received a complaint alleging the alleged rape victim faced gender discrimination in how the university responded to her report of being assaulted by a male student.
"The complaint raises whether the university fails to promptly and equitably respond to complaints, reports and/or incidents of sexual violence of which it had notice," including the woman's report, "thereby creating for students a sexually hostile environment," supervisory attorney Karen Tamburro wrote.
The university police department filed a criminal complaint against the alleged perpetrator earlier this month — more than eight months after the incident, McCarroll said. A student disciplinary hearing is scheduled in February.
"This whole matter is still under review, obviously, but yes, we believe we are properly handling the case," McCarroll said. "Having a safe campus has always been a very top priority for Iowa State University."
News of the investigation comes days after some students said they were on edge following ISU emails that said the school was investigating sexual assaults that allegedly occurred at a fraternity party and a residence hall this month.
The Iowa Supreme Court is also considering whether school officials overstepped in disciplining former basketball player Bubu Palo, who was kicked off the team before last season after being accused of sexually assaulting a female student. A judge later ruled there was no evidence he violated the school's sexual misconduct policy.
The case being investigated by the federal office involves Patrick Whetstone, 19, campus police Capt. Darin Van Ryswyk said. Whetstone is scheduled to be arraigned next week on third-degree sexual abuse charges.
A criminal complaint alleges Whetstone and a 19-year-old woman were at a drinking party at an on-campus apartment last March. The woman got sick from intoxication and passed out or fell asleep on a couch, and woke up to find Whetstone assaulting her, the complaint alleges. Whetstone was a student at the time.
Capt. Aaron DeLashmutt declined comment on why the investigation took several months but said it wasn't affected by the federal complaint. He said many factors can delay assault investigations, including the availability of witnesses.
"We operated the same as we always do," he said.
Story County Attorney Stephen Holmes, who would normally prosecute the case, said Thursday he has withdrawn because he has a conflict of interest he declined to specify. The Iowa Attorney General's Office has taken over the prosecution.
Whetstone's lawyer didn't return a phone message.
The federal office requested all records related to the woman's report of the assault and the university's response, including how it investigated and what steps it took to support the alleged victim. The letter also requested details of other investigations into complaints of sex discrimination, harassment and violence dating to 2011.
McCarroll said school officials have reviewed and revised policies for handling sexual assault cases in recent years.
"We think they compare quite favorably to what is being done at other universities," he said.
Copyright © The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
