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COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) — The latest on an assistant University of Missouri professor being charged with misdemeanor assault in connection with a run-in with student journalists during campus protests (all times local):
6:40 p.m.
Some Republicans in the state Senate continue to criticize the University of Missouri for not firing an assistant professor who confronted journalists during campus protests last November.
Melissa Click was charged with misdemeanor assault Monday in connection with her run-in with a student videographer and a student photographer. The confrontation on the Columbia campus happened during protests over what demonstrators saw as indifference to racial issues at the school.
Republican Sen. Eric Schmitt, of Glendale, and others on the Senate floor Monday questioned why Click hasn't been fired. He says lawmakers could look closely at the school's budget, which includes state funding, in the wake of what has occurred there.
Democratic Sen. Maria Chappelle-Nadal, of University City, says the discussion about Click is a distraction. She says some alumni and others are embarrassed by what Chappelle-Nadal described as racism at the university.
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4:50 p.m.
A University of Missouri student who had a confrontation with an assistant professor last November during campus protests says he's disappointed the educator won't be fired anytime soon.
Melissa Click was charged with misdemeanor assault Monday in connection with her run-in with student videographer Mark Schierbecker and a student photographer. The confrontation on the Columbia campus happened during protests over what demonstrators saw as indifference to racial issues at the school.
The interim chancellor of the Columbia campus, Hank Foley, says he's willing to let the justice system run its course involving Click, who is seeking tenure. Foley is rebuffing calls for Click to be fired.
Schierbecker, a senior, says he doesn't trust the university to mete out "the due process she deserves."
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3:50 p.m.
The interim chancellor of the University of Missouri's Columbia campus is rebuffing calls for an assistant professor to be ousted after she confronted student journalists during protests last November.
Hank Foley said Monday that the university will not act hastily regarding Melissa Click's future with the school, including a decision on tenure.
Click was charged with misdemeanor assault earlier Monday. Foley says he's willing to wait for the legal process to play out.
Click confronted a student photographer and a student videographer during protests over what demonstrators saw as indifference to racial issues on the Columbia campus.
A curator of the four-campus system, David Steelman, again called for Click's dismissal on Monday.
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3 p.m.
A law professor says an assistant University of Missouri professor charged with misdemeanor assault over her confrontation with student journalists during protests last November deserves a fair process involving her future with the school.
Ben Trachtenberg is an associate law professor who chairs the Columbia campus' Faculty Council on University Policy. He says Melissa Click doesn't have tenure but is being considered for that promotion.
Click was charged with misdemeanor assault Monday.
She confronted a student photographer and a student videographer during protests over what demonstrators saw as indifference to racial issues on the Columbia campus.
Trachtenberg says "it seems like there are a lot of little scuffles and shoving in this country that don't lead to the involvement of the criminal justice system."
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2:20 p.m.
A member of the University of Missouri system's governing board is calling anew for the ouster of an assistant professor who confronted student journalists during protests last November on the Columbia campus.
Melissa Click was charged with misdemeanor assault Monday.
University curator David Steelman says he's unsatisfied with a letter of admonishment put in Click's employment file. And he's disappointed Columbia's police and city prosecutor "have acted faster than the university to take action protecting the rights and safety of students."
Click confronted a student photographer and a student videographer during protests over what demonstrators saw as indifference to racial issues on the campus. The protests led to the resignations of the president of the four-campus system and the Columbia campus' chancellor.
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10:20 a.m.
A University of Missouri assistant professor is charged with misdemeanor assault in connection with a run-in with student journalists during campus protests last November.
Columbia city prosecutor Steve Richey filed the municipal court complaint Monday against 45-year-old Melissa Click.
The assistant professor of communications confronted a student photographer and a student videographer during the protests, calling for "muscle" to help remove them from the protest area.
That day's demonstrations came after the university system's president and the Columbia campus' chancellor resigned amid protests over what some saw as indifference to racial issues. The videographer filed a complaint with university police.
Click did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment, and her listed home phone number is not in service.
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Online:
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