A lawsuit that said Brown University had falsely accused a student of rape in 2006 and then pressured him to withdraw from the university has been settled.
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A lawsuit that said Brown University had falsely accused a student of rape in 2006 and then pressured him to withdraw from the university has been settled.
The suit, filed against Brown by the former student, William R. McCormick III, and his parents, also named as defendants the female student he was accused of raping and her father, a wealthy alumnus and university donor. The suit asserted that the father had used his status to prompt Brown to take unjustifiably swift action against Mr. McCormick, who in 2006 was a freshman on a full scholarship.
No criminal charges were ever filed against him, and no rape allegations were reported to the police.
As part of the suit, the McCormicks sought—and a judge granted—an order requiring Brown to disclose detailed records of the donor’s gifts, an unprecedented step against a private university.
Terms of the settlement were not disclosed, but in a statement issued by lawyers for Mr. McCormick and his accuser, they said they had “resolved all of the disputes between them ... to their mutual satisfaction.” Mr. McCormick, his parents, his accuser, and her father all declined to comment.
For its part, Brown said in a statement that it had been informed today that “a private settlement” had been reached in the case. “The university is not a party to the settlement,” the statement said, “and did not participate in any settlement negotiations.” Brown reiterated that it had “acted appropriately with respect to both parties,” and stood ready to demonstrate that in court.
Mr. McCormick subsequently graduated from Bucknell University, according to the Associated Press. His accuser graduated from Brown last year.
Word of the settlement became public today, when the judge, John J. McConnell Jr. of the U.S. District Court in Providence, R.I., dismissed the case.
The Chronicle has a policy of not naming alleged victims of sexual assault; to protect the identity of the female student The Chronicle is also not identifying her father.
Correction (4:13 p.m.): As several commenters have pointed out, Brown does not offer athletic scholarships, so the original post’s reference to Mr. McCormick’s receiving a wrestling scholarship was an error. The post has been updated to reflect this correction. Also, since the post’s original publication, Brown has issued a statement about the settlement. It has been added to this post.
