Now that a new state court of appeals ruling has ruled that WSU has to allow for a more thorough adjudication process in cases involving expulsion, what does this mean for Cougars football players Robert Barber, Logan Tago and T.J. Fehoko?
Washington State’s beleaguered student conduct procedures took another hit Thursday when the state Court of Appeals ruled that WSU and 26 other public institutions of higher education have to begin using a more robust adjudication process in cases where students face expulsion, or suspensions of more than 10 days.
Our education reporter, Katherine Long, wrote about the ruling here. It stemmed from the judge’s decision in a case involving the spring 2014 expulsion of a WSU graduate student.
What does this mean for WSU football players Robert Barber, T.J. Fehoko and Logan Tago, who were all called before the WSU student conduct board this fall?
For Barber, the ruling won’t make an immediate difference, but only because his case is now in the hands of Whitman County Superior Court.
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Barber, the Cougars’ senior nose tackle, was originally expelled by WSU’s student conduct board in September for allegedly assaulting another student at a party this summer. The board later changed his sanction from expulsion to suspension.
But Barber then filed a petition against WSU in Whitman County Superior Court on grounds that WSU did not follow proper administrative procedures during Barber’s hearing. On Nov. 16, judge David Frazier granted Barber a stay of his suspension which allowed the Samoan defensive lineman to return to football and the classroom, and he’s still hoping to graduate as planned in December. The defensive lineman has yet to be charged with any crime.
This week’s new ruling from the Court of Appeals would only affect Barber “if the school doesn’t follow through on their pledge to graduate him this December,” Barber’s defense attorney Stephen Graham said in an email to The Seattle Times.
In that case, “the school will have to give him a full hearing similar to a court trial,” Graham said.
This would allow Barber to be represented by an attorney, who would have the ability to cross-examine witnesses and present evidence, among other things. These rights are not currently available to WSU students who come before the conduct board in brief administrative hearings.
“The court decision is a stunning rebuke of the entire disciplinary (system) at WSU,” Graham said. “The days of professors playing judges are largely over, at least for serious allegations.”
Under WSU’s rules, Barber has until Feb. 3 to complete all requirements to be considered a graduate of the fall 2016 class.
For Barber’s teammates, Fehoko and Tago, the new ruling could be significant, and it could mean full adjudicatory hearings for both football players who face expulsion, and a two-year suspension, respectively.
The conduct board found Fehoko responsible for allegedly breaking another student’s jaw at the same party Barber attended, and sanctioned him with expulsion.
Tago was originally sanctioned with suspension through May 2017 for allegedly assaulting another WSU student and allegedly stealing his beer. He has since been charged with second degree felony robbery and fourth degree misdemeanor assault, but has pleaded not guilty and is awaiting his trial in January.
Tago and Fehoko’s sanctions were temporarily lifted on Nov. 17, when WSU announced that, in light of the judge’s decision in Barber’s case that found the conduct board might have committed procedural errors, it was conducting a review of other recent WSU conduct board cases.
WSU president Kirk Schulz also announced a pending “in-depth examination of the entire student conduct process.”
Since then, the conduct board has served both Tago and Fehoko notices of a new hearing date – Dec. 9.
However, this week’s Court of Appeals ruling pushed that new hearing back to next semester. A source close to the situation confirmed Friday evening that Tago and Fehoko’s hearings have both been postponed indefinitely.
“We have no plans to vacate any additional student conduct case decisions at this time. We have pending student conduct hearings, but we now expect that those hearings will be postponed through the balance of the semester,” WSU spokesperson Rob Strenge said Friday in an email to The Seattle Times.
The last day of fall classes at WSU is Dec. 9 and finals run through Dec. 16.
Strenge said the university is currently reviewing the new Court of Appeals ruling and will not discuss the implications of the ruling until their review is completed – likely sometime early next week.
“The ruling will be taken into consideration with respect to any emergency rulemaking decisions and also as part of the in-depth examination of the student conduct process,” Strenge said Friday.
Strenge did not have any details for what this “in-depth examination” would entail, but said it would involve “the formation of a working group and reviews by outside consultants. The specific procedures to be followed in that review are under development.”