The University of Colorado at Boulder will receive federal help in the multiplying recruiting and sex allegations it faces, while at the University of Wisconsin, football player Dwayne Smith will miss the team’s first five spring practice sessions beginning March 5 due to sexual-assault allegations.
Congress’ Subcommittee on Commerce, Trade and Consumer Protection will hold a hearing on CU-Boulder’s recruiting methods March 11. The subcommittee stems from Congress’ Committee on Energy and Commerce and has investigated issues such as the Broadcast Decency Act, involving networks ABC and NBC, and legislation supporting the Do-Not-Call Act, a list of numbers that telemarketers cannot solicit.
Colorado Gov. Bill Owens appointed the state’s attorney general to special prosecutor to investigate the charges Monday. Gov. Owens also announced he will add two members to CU-Boulder’s Board of Regents to represent the public ? one member is planned to be an advocate for victims of sexual assault and the other a prosecutor.
The Colorado Congressional Delegation fully supports the university’s current investigations into the allegations, especially the university’s independent investigation into the athletic department, CU-Boulder president Betsy Hoffman said in a written release. Hoffman also said the addition of the special prosecutor to the investigation will only aid the university in its fact-finding.
“Our priorities include finding the facts and creating a safe environment for all students ? on and off campus,” she said in the release.
Mary Huron Hunter, spokeswoman for the City of Boulder police department, said there are several different cases being handled both on and off campus by both campus and city police. She said the University of Boulder police department handles incidents that happen on the university’s campus and that the city police department handles the cases that occur off-campus.
Although Huron Hunter said she could not comment on whether the federal government’s investigation would help or hinder the department’s own police work, she said city police are currently very active in investigating the allegations.
“There are lots of forces coming together right now to address the issues raised in the community,” Huron Hunter said.
UW sophomore Melanie Musial said that although police are rightfully investigating the allegations the campus should handle some of the student issues on its own.
“The players should definitely be prosecuted criminally, but the players’ activities on campus are matters that should be handled more by the college,” she said.
Musial gave the example of players visiting the bars on campus.
Musial thinks the university’s football team needs a complete makeover to prevent future rape allegations.
“CU-Boulder should definitely get new coaches and staffing so it (sexual allegations) doesn’t happen anymore,” Musial said. “The rapes should be criminally investigated, and the players should be kicked off the team.”
At UW, the Appeals Committee of the University of Wisconsin’s Student-Athlete Discipline Policy has suspended football player Dwayne Smith since Feb. 23. His recent five-practice suspension, announced Wednesday, is conditional on the fact that no new information surfaces that would cause the committee to re-evaluate Smith’s sentence.
Musial said the recent misconduct of some UW athletes is similar to the allegations against CU-Boulder athletes, but the comparison is no coincidence.
“It (athlete misconduct) happens everywhere, not just on those campuses,” Musial said. “It (these incidents) shows that people that think they have too much power and can have everything they want can be an issue on a college campus.”
Musial said the allegations against UW and CU-Boulder athletes can be a valuable warning for other campuses.
“These are not isolated incidents,” she said. “All colleges should start regulating the behavior of athletes before the problem gets out of control.”
