In the past nine years, there have been three presidential elections, 6 congressional elections, and 35 different iPhone models.
Yet, in that same amount of time, one former Purdue University student has been stuck in limbo, unable to end a nightmare that began all those years ago.
The Allegations
During the fall semester of 2015, a male student whom The Daily Wire will refer to as John Doe began dating a female student referred to in court documents as Jane Doe. The relationship was okay for a while, but on December 13, 2015, Jane threatened to commit suicide in front of John by standing on the ledge of a parking garage after throwing objects around her dorm room and crying while saying she hated life. After this incident, according to John’s eventual lawsuit against Purdue reviewed by The Daily Wire, all sexual activity between the two ceased.
In early January 2016, John reported Jane’s suicide attempt to Purdue, and shortly after, she began to pull away from the relationship and the two went their separate ways. Four months later, and only after Purdue’s highly marketed Sexual Assault Awareness Month events, Jane accused John of sexually assaulting her during their relationship.
John received notice of the accusations on April 11, 2016. Jane claimed she awoke one night to John groping her. She told him it was not okay. John told her at some point before that incident that he digitally penetrated her while she was sleeping. He said he felt bad about the first incident but proceeded to the second incident anyway. Jane became upset at John over these incidents and left his room. John had also gone through her underwear in her laundry, and had once chased her down the hall, joking about tasing her. After they had broken up, he also continued to go to her room unannounced. She claimed John had a temper he couldn’t control as well.
John vehemently denies Jane’s allegations, stating in his lawsuit that he responded to the allegations by informing Purdue that he never groped her in her sleep in November 2015, but that in mid-December of that year, after her suicide attempt, she slept on a futon in his dorm room while he slept on the floor. At some point in the night, John accidentally touched her knee and she began freaking out before leaving the room. John also said he never had any sexual contact with her while she was asleep, and therefore never told her that he did. He added that he never went through her laundry but sometimes did her laundry for her and never threatened to tase Jane. He also noted that the two never formally broke up, they simply began seeing each other less, and that he merely went to her room to return an item. At that time, she told him not to go to her room, so he didn’t.
John provided evidence that Jane continued to shower him with affection even after these alleged incidents, demonstrating behavior not in line with someone who had been sexually assaulted. She continued to text with John over the holidays, wished him a Happy Christmas Eve, and sent him a package of homemade cookies for his family. She also invited him to her room at the beginning of the spring 2016 semester.
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In addition, John provided Purdue with evidence that it was Jane who had the temper and tried to project that onto John. She often contemplated running away and not returning to the school as well. John also provided a list of more than 30 names to substantiate his reputation, since Jane attacked his character and credibility in her allegations.
Purdue’s policy did not allow John to review the investigator’s prepared report, nor was he provided a hearing to determine the credibility of Jane’s claims. John maintains in his lawsuit that his “ability to defend himself was severely and unfairly prejudiced.”
Instead of a hearing, a three-person panel reviewed John’s case. Jane never appeared before the panel and instead provided a statement written by Purdue’s Title IX coordinator. In that statement, Jane only requested that John be removed from Purdue’s Navy ROTC program, of which they were both members. Jane’s new boyfriend at the time was also a member. Jane stated that she didn’t fear John on campus and merely wanted him out of the ROTC.
Without any evidence corroborating Jane’s claims, John was suspended from Purdue and had to leave the Navy ROTC program. He appealed the decision, but was denied without adequate explanation, so he filed a lawsuit against the university as many students have done in the past decade.
The Lawsuit
John dreamed of becoming a Navy SEAL officer, but says he can’t get a federal job with this on his record. His Title IX case is the longest ongoing case of its kind, with the closest similar case lasting seven years and ending in a disappointing motion to dismiss for the wrongly accused student.
“Purdue’s wrongful suspension of me closed all federal & military employment opportunities because I was employed with the Navy through their ROTC program at the time of the suspension, which forced me to ‘resign’ with the Navy after my school suspension was finalized,” John told The Daily Wire in an email.
“Expungement of my school disciplinary file would give me an opportunity to fix my [Department of Defense] record, which currently makes me look bad due to the circumstances and thus limits my employment opportunities. For reference, I was a 4.0 GPA varsity athlete when I graduated high school, and double majoring with a minor while employed with the Navy ROTC at Purdue. My longtime dream was to become a Navy SEAL officer. The derailment of my life by Purdue was severe, to say the least.”
The case has persisted due the slow nature of the justice system, numerous filings and responses from both parties, and appeals to higher courts. The case even landed on the desk of Judge Amy Coney Barrett before she was nominated for the Supreme Court. Barrett, who was with the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals in 2019, upheld John’s claims that Purdue violated his due process and Title IX rights. Title IX prohibits discrimination based on sex, and accused students have said they are discriminated against as males when they are falsely accused and a school takes no steps to protect them.
When the case was sent back to a lower court, a judge dismissed John’s due process claim. John is trying to get the court to reinstate that claim and has had the judge who dismissed it replaced. The next stage of this case is a trial on the Title IX claim alone, which could result in what John ultimately wants: This whole thing to be expunged from his record.
After nine years of litigation, John’s family has spent more than $350,000 on legal bills, draining their savings and 401ks. He is currently working to set up a fundraiser to continue fighting Purdue’s persecution.
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Purdue’s Response
In a statement to The Daily Wire, Purdue University chief spokesperson Erin Murphy said the school rejected John’s assertions of unfairness toward him.
“Most of [John’s] claims were dismissed long ago,” Murphy said, referring to the multiple claims students include in lawsuits hoping at least one will be accepted.
“His single remaining claim has been ready for trial for years. [John] insists on going to trial, but his lawyers have caused delays. Some of his lawyers quit his case in June 2023 after the last settlement conference,” Murphy continued. “[John] has publicly criticized those former lawyers. His remaining lawyer has filed repeated demands for a different judge, which were rejected by multiple courts, including the United States Supreme Court. His remaining lawyer has also required trial postponements for personal reasons that are shown in the court record.”
Those “delays” refer to John and his attorney attempting to get a new judge assigned to the case due to allegations of unfairness and a pro-Purdue bias. There is a new judge overseeing the case, as the previous judge was promoted by the Biden administration.
John’s attorneys did not quit on him, and the “public criticism” Murphy refers to is a testimonial on his attorney’s website saying that the attorney left his previous law firm “after partners at the firm tried to strong-arm” John’s case from him.
Finally, the “personal reasons” Murphy alludes to at the end of her statement refers to the attorney’s cancer diagnosis. John’s attorney has been battling cancer while fighting for his client.
