DEFENDING THE FIRST AMENDMENT SINCE 1911 TUESDAY, APRIL 17, 2018
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Volume 107, Issue 26
HEART OVER HEIGHT
Democracy of tomorrow is student-run today
HIDDEN GEMS
SEE MAIN POINT PAGE 6
SEE PLACES PAGE 5
SEE BASEBALL PAGE 8
By Sawyer Click Assistant News Editor Former Student Government President Connor Clegg was impeached and removed from office April 16 during a joint session of the Student Government Senate and the Graduate House of Representatives. Interim Supreme Court Chief Justice Jordan Duran said under Article 7 Section 4 of the Student Government Constitution that Clegg is formally removed from office. Clegg, found guilty by a majority vote of all six articles of impeachment, has 48 hours to vacate his office and is ineligible to hold Student Government office again. Clegg is the first Student Government president to be impeached at Texas State, according to Dean of Students Margarita Arellano. Following Student Government's failure to meet quorum April 11 and students' subsequent 53.5-hour sit-in protest, Arellano tweeted a second joint session would be held in place of Student Government's annual banquet. The session began at 7:06 p.m. with all 40 senators in attendance.
Student Government President Connor Clegg leaves the LBJ Teaching Theater after he was found guilty at his impeachment trial. PHOTO BY VICTOR RODRIGUEZ
SEE IMPEACH PAGE 2
LEGISLATION
TITLE IX
Student Government legislation goes missing
Title IX reports over 40 incidents, only one sanction
By Katie Burrell News Editor The Texas State Student government's website shows 23 pieces of passed legislation, the president said the organization has passed double that amount, but members of senate and the president will not provide the full list. During the presidential and vice presidential candidate debate hosted Feb. 12 by The University Star, candidates were questioned about the legislative efforts throughout the 2017-18 academic year under former Student Government President Connor Clegg, who was impeached April 16, and Vice President Jackie Merritt. Brooklyn Boreing, current president-elect, Elijah Miller and Preston Nieves, senators and former candidates said they do not know what happened to the legislation they worked on and passed during the year. Boreing, Miller and Nieves said during individual phone interviews
they believe implementation of legislation falls on the executive branch. Nieves said policy tends to get lost after it gets to the president’s desk. Nieves wrote the Legislative Transparency Act, passed Sept. 18, which was sponsored by Miller and two other senators. The act is not in effect despite passing during the fall semester. According to the act, Chief of Staff Alec Garza is responsible for updating the website with new legislation and provide a timeline for legislation in process to implementation. “The only explanation I can think of is that maybe it’s not a personal priority, there’s some laziness or worst-case scenario, maybe people don’t want transparency because it would threaten their power and position within Student Government,” Nieves said.
SEE LEGISLATION PAGE 2
By Sawyer Click Assistant News Editor Despite an uptick of Title IX reports of sexual assaults of students, only one sanction has been placed on any of the accused in the current academic year. Nearly 50 Title IX sexual assault reports have been submitted during the current school year, on course to exceed last year’s number. However, last year, five out of 48 respondents saw consequences for the complaints alleged against them. This year, there has only been a single respondent found in violation out of the 47 reports submitted. Currently, 10 of the 47 reports are still under review. A majority of the 47 reports submitted this year were done so online, where complainants can submit a report either signed, anonymously or under a pseudonym. Additionally, it is mandatory that all faculty, staff, and student-employees report Title IX violations that they become aware of. Once the office of Title IX receives the report, interim Title IX Coordinator Vincent Luizzi and investigators scrutinize the report, determining if there is enough evidence to pursue a case. Once approved, a typical investigation is performed: witnesses' statements are collected, the complainant
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and respondent give testimonies, and the evidence is analyzed by investigators. “A majority of the cases are indeterminable,” Luizzi said. “We either are missing names, dates or any other specifics that could help us out. There’s no real lead there, so we can’t pursue those.” For the protection of complainants, special interim measures can be taken to separate the complainant and respondent during the investigative process. However, according to several sources, a current resident assistant with two open Title IX cases involving residents still lives down the hall from them. Cases that leave victims vulnerable can slip through the cracks, leaving complainants like Student Government President-elect Brooklyn Boreing underwhelmed. Boreing reported to Title IX during her freshman year and found the investigative process to be so emotionally distressing after meeting with an investigator that she requested to drop the case. “There was no ethical appeal in talking to him,” Boreing said. “The investigator seemed emotionless. That was when I decided it just wasn’t worth pursuing anymore.”
SEE TITLE IX PAGE 2