A former UNM student who said she was assaulted by two Lobo football players and a CNM student last year filed a lawsuit in District Court against the university Thursday. The lawsuit alleges Title IX investigators at UNM protected the athletes by conducting a shoddy investigation.
"Gender discrimination is really at the heart of what we’re talking about here. Often there’s no way to pursue the safety and the justice that a victim might need," said her attorney, Brad Hall. "The lawsuit reflects campus sexual assault victims searching for other ways than the criminal justice system to address sexual violence."
Criminal charges against the men were dropped due to lack of evidence in August. They were allowed back on the team, and they announced they would sue UNM police for failing to do their job correctly.
Hall said his client can seek financial restitution under Title IX for being forced to move out of state and away from her full academic scholarship at UNM to another school where she pays tuition.
UNM released a statement saying the university has not yet had a chance to review the lawsuit. The Department of Justice announced it would investigate UNM’s sexual assault policies late last year.
Funding for KUNM's Public Health New Mexico project comes from the McCune Foundation and the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. Find out more at publichealthnm.org.
