120 CommentsIn the last week, campuses around the country have been reeling over an increased focus on sexual assault, and publications from all fronts have addressed the topic. Here at Columbia, the past seven days have featured lists of four alleged rapists in bathrooms in Hamilton, Lerner, and Butler.
On the morning of May 14, according to Spec, Emma Sulkowicz, CC ’15, filed a police report against Jean-Paul Nungesser, CC ’15, for alleged sexual assault. Nungesser’s name appeared on the list circulating around campus listing the names of four alleged rapists.
According to Spec, Sulkowicz went to the police after finishing her finals on the 13th. She filed a complaint with the NYPD after being dissatisfied with Columbia’s internal handling of the case.
Sulkowicz’s experience with the NYPD was harrowing, to say the least. She describes the police as “dismissive,” as they emphasized the fact that she had engaged in earlier consensual sex with Nungesser and that she could not remember specific details of the attack, like what shoes Nungesser was wearing. They demanded graphic details, and one officer also allegedly told friends Sulkowicz brought for emotional support that he “didn’t believe [her] for a second.”
Sulkowicz, one of 23 survivors who recently filed a Title IX claim against Columbia, was also featured in a Time Magazine video, part of Time’s recent feature on sexual assault on college campuses. Sulkowicz writes, “The Columbia administration is harboring serial rapists on campus. They’re more concerned about their public image than keeping people safe.”
Columbia University has declined to comment on the matter.
Loading …
120 Comments
@Chris Fung Emma Sulkowicz raped me 2 years ago. I didn’t report it to police because I was ashamed.
@Lysistrata Yo we should all just not give the girls the D anymore for a bit and then they’ll be raping us problem solved. Bojangles!
@Los Pollos Hermanos Better call Saul!
@Well... I don’t think that commenter was saying that allegations should be blindly believed. Just that we should recognize that it’s not so easy to provide proof in this situation, when people keep shouting for evidence.
@Anonymous I am so over this story. It got way out of hand. I don’t want to read anymore about it
@BwogKing JeanPaul has NOT been convicted in any court and he was found to be NOT RESPONSIBLE by Columbia. So you should take responsibility for libeling him.
@Alumni Please stop publishing names of accusers or victims bwog. Destroying his reputation befote he is judged guilty or innocent is unnecessary. Furthermore no one knows who is right and who is wrong. Let us wait for a verdict.
@SEAS '14 Jean-Paul, take responsibility for what you’ve done. Hiding silently does not help what’s left of your reputation.
@Hova Jean-Paul, you can take the bitch out tha hood, but don’t fuckin feed’em. This biatch is extra thristy.
@50 cent Get money fuck bitches
@Anonymous Is BWOG still a journalistic publication, or has it become a tabloid? Ms. Sulkowicz is an alleged victim, an alleged survivor, of Mr. Nungesser. Further, it is neither unreasonable nor “harrowing” for the police to request a precise description of the accused, as well as specific – “graphic” – details of the crime. If the accused is found guilty, based on evidence, his punishment should be severe, and his affiliation with the Columbia community should cease. Until then, those engaging in a campus-wide witch hunt would do well to remember that unproven accusations are, if ultimately incorrect, a crime in themselves. And those who propagate them on bathroom walls and in pamphlets, if even one be incorrect, should themselves be prosecuted by the law, and removed from Columbia.
@Anon So what did Bwog do wrong by reporting on this?
@Alum This case has gotten way too much attention. The more I read, the less of a story there is. Two college students having sex. Isn’t there other news?
@... Rape is not sex.
@..... Of course rape is sex. Just because you think it’s bad doesn’t mean it isn’t sex.
@..... rape, n.- Originally and chiefly: the act or crime, committed by a man, of forcing a woman to have sexual intercourse with him against her will, esp. by means of threats or violence. In later use more generally: the act of forced, non-consenting, or illegal sexual intercourse with another person; sexual violation or assault.
Rape is definitely sex, the Oxford English Dictionary says so. You guys can downvote this all you want, but your just arguing against the English language.
@Guess what Ever stop to think that it might be justified in blaming someone for not reporting a crime. Everyone here is touting their trumpets “THIS MAN IS A SERIAL RAPIST” and don’t even stop to think, “hey, if one of these women had reported him, and he was under investigation, he probably would not have raped again.” This is the point of the justice system. It’s not victim blaming–i.e. she is not getting blamed for being raped, but damn right she should have tried her hardest to protect herself and her fellow students by reporting him to the police.
@Anonymous three women reported him and he was confronted by a governing authority–yet he STILL was audacious enough to do it again
@Anthony Do you know what it means to RUIN a life. Completely destroy a person. Excrete them from society. Inflict lifelong humiliation. My Father was accused 50 years ago. Never a trial or conviction. I was called rapey boy. My sisters were called rape sluts. I had to leave home at 18. When the woman who accused my Father died. Her son found her diary. She wrote about how she lied because she really liked him, but he started dating another girl who she hated. She wanted to get back at that girl. She always knew where my Father lived. SHE KEPT UP HER STORY FOR 50 YEARS. My whole life was destroyed. My sisters have suffered worse than me. My mother died in shame.
Accusations are weapons. If you use a weapon to injure someone YOU are the perpetrator.
@I'm sure Paul knows exactly what it means to ruin a life, but hey, who doesn’t dream of having to become an advocate against rape and unjust institutional processes when they’re 21 years old?
Honestly, we tell women so frequently that they need to make sure they don’t put themselves in a “bad position,” why they hell shouldn’t we tell that to men too? My mother always told me that I could run the risk of being accused, and so it was important only to have partners that I trusted, to be open, respectful, and civil with people, and not to treat people like shit sexually, emotionally, or otherwise.
If you can be reasonably accused of rape, you put yourself in a bad position honestly, and you have yourself to blame. It’s already such a hard crime to prove, that if it didn’t happen, you’re almost certainly not going to get punished or blamed for it. I’m far more worried about the countless women who have to suffer in the face of unsympathetic laws and institutions than I do about the men, and I’m a man as well. Down vote me, that’s fine. But at the end of the day men helped make this system and we’re all complicit in it. We should suffer the consequences if we don’t actively try to change it.
@Jleno LIAR!!! YOU ARE NOT A MAN. I know you. You’re just a STUPID GIRL who thinks she knows it all.
@BwogKing I’m not complicit in any “system” because I didn’t make it or design it. I refuse to take the blame for someone else. Would you recommend executing someone simply because he shares the same skin color as a convicted killer? Why should I take the fall for someone else simply because he is of my sex? I’m not a rapist, and I’ve never even had sex. So it’s not my burden or duty to take the fall for someone else. You’re like one of those racist idiots who demands that innocent Muslims constantly march in the streets whenever some radical Islamist who has absolutely no connection to the innocents commits a crime.
And in any case, are you telling us that we should avoid sexual contact if we want to avoid being falsely accused? I will say that I don’t think someone who is raped is morally responsible for being raped, although I do think that as a practical measure, people should take precautions to protect themselves. So for example I refuse to go out into Riverside Park at night because I know as a practical measure it’s dangerous and could result in me being mugged. And in any case, you aren’t really saying anything different from what the MGTOWers are saying. They avoid sexual contact with women both to avoid being raped by women and to avoid being falsely accused.
@BSGS Clearly people who hate the police in instances like this have never seen L and O: SVU.
@rsef This is why I only have sex with myself because my hand cant rape me
@Can someone Please explain how you even go about proving rape?? Like say this is true, someone was raped in their own dorm (for example), what kind of evidence can you possibly have that the rape (vs consensual sex) took place?
Proving rapes are hard, which makes it so much more difficult for women to get justice.
@Anonymous … therefore an allegation should constitute evidence? Are you that dumb? The difficulty of finding evidence does not obviate the need for evidence.
@Anonymous http://lmgtfy.com/?q=evidence+for+sexual+assault
don’t be a fucking idiot, thanks
@Same person since when did I say the victim’s word constitutes evidence? Stop adding words to my statement. I’m actually saying the opposite!
I don’t see how my question was stupid… I did search how the procedures are for rape cases and it still doesn’t make sense.
IF it was consensual sex and they used a condom -> the vaginal swab will prove nothing, because duh there is no sperm since a condom was used.
If it was rape WITH condom, you also can’t find sperm/DNA unless its hair. Even if you did find hair, that doesnt prove it was rape, it just proves the sex took place!
So yea I don’t see how my question is stupid. I’m simply asking a question and looking for a reasonable response instead of “omg you’re so stupid.”
@Same person this is why columbia is full of judgmental pretentious assholes. I’m asking a question and my response is that im stupid. Great thanks for letting me know we can’t have a discussion/argument in a mature manner.
@the fuzz A rape kit performed by doctors establishes that sexual contact took place. Medical professionals document any signs of injury including signs that force was used to restrain a victim. Toxicology tests can determine how intoxicated a person was, if they were too inebriated to have been able to reasonably consent, or if any drugs were used to incapacitate the victim. Statements taken soon after an incident are considered to be more reliable than complaints made long after the fact because there is less time to consider ways of ‘getting a story straight’. It’s easier to track down independent witnesses to what happened before/after the sooner a call to 911 is made.
There’s a hell of a lot that can be done to build a criminal case for sexual assault, but the victim or someone who knows what happened needs to call emergency workers as soon as possible. A 911 call has to be made as soon as possible. For incidents on Columbia dial 911 for police and then public safety. Calls to public safety dispatch CAVA who can get to you faster than FDNY-EMS and also immediately starts to mobilize university resources like crisis counseling. Just first, please, call 911 and get the NYPD to respond.
@BwogKing Unfortunately, how we feel about accused criminals and their accusers emotionally has NO PLACE in the courtroom. What is anybody supposed to do without evidence? I’m not making any assumption about innocence or guilt. I don’t know these two people and I don’t know what happened. And I’m not going to watch the CNN video. But I’m not going to presume that he’s guilty just because, especially since we are supposed to assume innocence until guilt is proven.
@BwogKing Because we believe in innocence until proven guilty. Why should I believe either of them? I don’t know either of them.
@Give this girl some bait Because she’s fishing for attention. Jesus titty fucking Christ.
@mouse http://www.columbiaspectator.com/2013/04/04/student-filmmakers-hone-skills-collaborating-dad-films-first-short-movie
@Anonymous I don’t understand why this wasn’t done sooner. Sexual assault is a crime. Crimes are handled by the NYPD. By federal mandate any investigations into sexual assaults on campus merely find a person “responsible/not responsible” based on a “preponderance of evidence”. That’s not the legal standards that courts go by, just a 51% chance that ‘he probably did it’. A school can’t justify expulsion or drastic sanctions based on such a weak legal standard. If they did, the accused would have a strong civil case to sue the university.
People need to know to call 911 as soon as they can following a sexual assault. If the victim doesn’t then a friend needs to step up. This long after the fact all physical evidence is gone, witnesses are less credible, and the whole thing boils down to ‘he said/she said’. There’s no chance in hell that the police are going to be able to make a case of this that could be prosecuted. It’s a terrible situation.
@Anonymous From the Spec article:
“During that time, she said, the policeman to whom she originally gave her statement was standing outside the room, actively dismissing her story to the friends she had brought to the precinct office with her for support.
“They told me he said stuff like, ‘Of all of these cases, 90 percent are bullshit, so I don’t believe your friend for a second,’” Sulkowicz said.
Sulkowicz said that the officer also repeatedly emphasized to her how “painful” the process of investigating her alleged assault would be and how much it would “hurt” her.
“It makes perfect sense why a survivor wouldn’t go to police the moment after she’s been physically violated,” she said. “If all the police are doing is stressing she’s going to suffer more, it’s unimaginable.””
@Anonymous Unfortunately there is no alternative to the police. The NYPD isn’t burger king, there’s no “have it your way”. You can’t pick a different agency if you don’t like how the cops handled something.
The police need to use a degree of skepticism in taking any complaint. A trial isn’t a room full of people yelling “we support you”, it’s a defense attorney going for your throat and 12 strangers trying to figure out if your story is believable.
I’m not saying it’s the victim’s fault at all, but it’s clearly not Columbia’s fault and not the NYPD’s fault. It’s the justice system. It seems like some students don’t think that people should need to be proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt before conviction.
@Anonymous thank you.
@You may not think you're blaming her but the whole “Y NO NYPD??” thing implies that she has failed to fulfill her duties as a rape victim. It doesn’t take into account the shock and fear victims experience in that critical window after their attack.
@Anonymous Shock and fear doesn’t excuse a complainant from showing proof beyond a reasonable doubt. I understand what you’re saying, but just because we can understand something doesn’t mean that it’s right. People need to have it drilled into their heads that if they’re ever the victim, or know a victim, DO NOT WAIT. CALL 911 IMMEDIATELY.
@I mean... Should the police be actively dismissing her story, though? Why shouldn’t the policeman just listen to her story and begin investigating? No one is asking for him to comfort her and tell her that the bad, bad rapist is going to jail. But his behavior isn’t appropriate. You wouldn’t automatically assume that another crime (murder, robbery, etc.) was “bullshit” until you had a reason for thinking that, so rape shouldn’t be different.
I think it’s really sad that so many people believe that the majority of rape accusations are false. It’s not easy to go public with the most humiliating details of your personal life, only to be told that you’re probably lying because most women who report rapes are liars.
@Anonymous stfu all of you talking about “ahh prove it” “ahhh preponderance” “ahhh no evidence” “ahhh she is doing this wrong.”
none of that is really relevant.
if she was attacked, she has the right to file fucking charges. it’s that simple. gtfo and stop internet shaming a woman who has legally and rightfully decided to take legal action. what the fuck do you trolls rape victims to do? huh? sit down and shut up like a good little girl? you sickos. you’re not the victim, you’re not the perp, you’re not the judge and you’re not the fucking jury. back off.
@Anon Bingo! Thank you.
She’s not asking the fucking readers of BWOG to serve justice in this case, she filed it with the various authorities and will apparently proceed through those (admittedly fucked up) channels.
And she didn’t even explain the evidence she does or doesn’t have–so I don’t even know why you fools are talking about her “lack of evidence” anyway.
@Anonymous Who is arguing with her right to take legal action? Those who should “stfu” about evidence are the ones favoring the intrinsically ‘legal’ component of that action. Those who condemn a potentially innocent man — regardless of the evidence, and thus regardless of any legal action being undertaken — are the ones acting as judge and jury and also living vicariously through the victim by thinking a demonstration of righteous indignation gives them the moral high ground. The “moral high ground” as you crusaders perceive it is a poor facsimile of justice. That’s the point.
Also, “stfu”? That’s cute and utterly disappointing. None of you can muster anything but statements of the form “None of you are entitled to think/talk a about this!” The mere fact that you are indignant does not make you *right.* Pathetic.
@Anon Why don’t you guys say “fuck” a few more times?
Very convincing!
@you're pathetic “making women even more crazy” you’re right, it’s women who perpetuate this crazy hysteric stereotype
except you, of course, because you’re such ~*~*~special snowflake, not like other girls~*~*~ who totally see the bigger picture and can’t understand why other women can’t
just kidding you are part of the problem and you should feel bad for being such an insensitive jerkass
@can someone please define rape, sexual assault, sexual misconduct, and sexual harassment. make a venn diagram and use examples for extra credit!
@Anonymous SERIAL RAPIST
@Captain Crunch Cereal Rapist.
@Rosebud Wrong. There is only one allegation of rape. The other two allegations concern a woman claiming that he grabbed her and attempted to kiss her, and another saying that he was emotionally abusive to her during their otherwise consensual relationship.
@i'm sorry she has no valid proof. she wants someone to be kicked out of school on HER WORD? even though she has had consensual sex with him twice before? and even though it has been a year since the alleged act? i’m sorry but she is not self aware at all. she doesn’t realize that she comes off as if she doesn’t know what the hell she is talking about
but mostly i’m sorry that as a woman, i can’t support her. i want to, but the way she is going about this is wrong and make women look even more crazy
@what the fuck is wrong with you
@Anonymous you should serve in the gender based misconduct panel lol
@anon As a woman you feel bad you can’t support her? As a human being on this planet, you should be ashamed for not supporting a brave woman as she seeks justice. Your first reaction to a victim sharing her story is to say, “she has no valid proof”??? And in what way is she “making women seem even more crazy”? Emma seems mature, composed, and incredibly strong. You seem ignorant, uninformed, hateful with little to no self awareness.
@Anonymous As a human being living in a liberal society with the rule of law, you should be ashamed for thinking that allegations constitute evidence. Women and homosexuals are sentenced to death in other parts of the world on mere allegations of adultery or sodomy. This is the sort of justice system you are advocating because it suits your paranoiac perception of rampant male sexual misconduct that makes men automatically guilty until proven innocent. This guy may very well be guilty, but you are shaming not only the alleged perpetrator, but also those who favor retaining some of the more subtle aspects of ‘justice’ that are apparently lost on those who, like you, think allegations constitute evidence. I’m sorry comments like these offend your backwards sensibilities, but for God’s sake, put down your pitchfork and start being the dispassionate citizen you are demanded to be by living in this society.
@Hm, valid point, but The same misogynistic/homophobic logic behind those crimes in other parts of the world foster the rape-culture/gender imbalance that allows for these types of crimes to continue to go unnoticed here. There are two completely different sets of intentions and histories driving both. When the law refuses to take care of its citizens such as in most of these cases of sexual assault/rape, you cannot invoke it to protect the accused (the authorities will do enough protecting on their own, it seems).
@Anonymous how would you suggest she go about it? she went to her school and she went to the police. what THE FUCK else are you supposed to do? if you mean be quiet and submissive about it, then… maybe you should take your own advice
@te Go to the police immediately, get a rape kit done and then you have evidence and are able to go after your rapist, waiting months to go to the police does nothing beside put the victim through unnecessary stress
@Jeff Baggins Why don’t you say “fuck” a few more times? I think that should convince me!
@Confused I’m sorry, what? Having sex with someone twice gives them license to anally rape you in the future?
As for the delay in her reporting the case, have some compassion. A lot of rape victims never get the courage to report their cases. That doesn’t negate the truth value of their stories.
@Excuse me, What? Does anything give you license to anally rape someone? I don’t know why you qualified that statement.
Also I’ve noticed a lot of heteronormativity in the comments. Like the only people who get anally raped are women? Excuse me, no. That’s not how it works sweetie. Also seems like a lot of ladies are saying mean things about Emma because they’re jealous. Now, if it were me Paul could fuck the shit out of my ass (literally) but that doesn’t give me the right to say mean things about Emma.
@Anonymous The problem with all this is that rape is ultimately a crime with very, very little evidence, especially if the victim does not report to the authorities soon afterwards. Even then, it’s still basically two sides of a story being presented: the “this person raped me” angle, and the “oh no it was totally consensual, and btw all those bruises are because s/he likes rough sex, promise!” one. Because of this, and evidence already being really scanty to begin with, making a conviction is dicey at best. It doesn’t really help that there’s a social stigma against rape victims/survivors either, which of course works against the victim/survivor in the police investigation and/or legal proceedings.
Additionally, I doubt most people are willing to use a rape accusation solely to drag someone’s name through the mud. I think that we all understand the implications of that sort of thing. That said, I do not think that taking all this to the public–and to the mob justice of the kangaroo courts–was the end goal of Emma or other rape accusers. Rather, these actions represent a fundamental failure on the part of society to address these problems. They tried these legal channels that you wrote of, but those channels proved inadequate. So now it’s come to this.
@Anonymous Cripes, looks like I suck at Bwog comments. Pretend this was a response to “Anon again” above.
@Anon again again This is the last I’ll comment on this issue, but first want to clear up what you wrote at the end about trying legal channels…. She didn’t try any legal channels until months after, when she reported to the school, and now almost two years later decides to go to the police. But that’s not even the point. I will try to explain why I feel so strongly against this public shaming.
I am confident that Emma is not a vengeful ex. I agree with you. She genuinely felt harmed and betrayed by this sexual encounter. But here’s the key word that you used: “doubt”. You “doubt” she would lie. But you don’t know. Lemme go further. Let’s say she’s not actively lying. But, I’ll offer a graphic scenario where perhaps the area is much grayer than, “This guy is 100% a rapist and should be ostracized for the rest of his life”
Here’s one scenario where your *doubt* is key here. (trigger warning) Say Emma and this individual were comfortable in bed together, having already slept a few times together, and were feeling especially frisky one night, and both parties are drunk. The man asks Emma if he can try anal, and Emma is nervous internally, but mutters “Okay”. Emma had never had anal, and it hurts much more than she imagined. However, she is whimpering softly to herself, and the man is unaware of this, as he cannot see her face, and is drunk himself. He then realizes something is wrong and pulls out, but the damage is done. Later, Emma recalls the pain she felt, and feels violated by the perpetrator, and is convinced that she must have specifically stated that she was not consenting.
In this scenario, both parties have been victimized. The man was not aware of the pain he was causing, and is now being accused of rape. Emma felt terrible pain. Don’t you see why the fact they were both intoxicated complicates this issue so dramatically? When people bring up intoxication, they are not blaming the victim for being drunk, they are pointing out that actions and memories while intoxicated may not accurately represent what happened.
Now, I’m not saying this happened. Chances are, it didn’t. Chances are, he did rape her. And rape is a heinous crime, I’ll be the first to agree with that. But a man’s livelihood should have nothing to do with chance. There are many possible grey areas where this man is not the monster he is portrayed as. And there is even the tiny possibility that Emma IS a vengeful ex girlfriend, and DID make all of this up. The fact is, NO ONE KNOWS what happened, and yet you pretend that you do.
@Anonymous muttering okay isn’t consent. consent is an enthusiastic yes.
@This is why so many men are nervous about this type of shit. So a person you’ve been having sex with approves of a sex act, but since she isn’t very enthusiastic you are breaching her consent and raping her? And besides, you’ve completely avoided the entire point I was making, because I was giving a hypothetical scenario. But whatever. There’s no point arguing with people who don’t believe in due process, that all men are savages, and women would ever spread misinformation about rape. Btw, I heard there were some witches roaming around Massachusetts, we should probably look into that.
@@This is why why would you have sex without someone who wasn’t completely into it tho?? if the other person is bored isn’t that a turn off? or mean that you should re-examine how you’re doing things?
@Men are mind readers now? Most retarded thing I read all day. And Ive been on barstool twice
@Regarding boring/bad sex it isn’t the same as rape
@Rosebud That’s an awfully slippery standard. Let’s be clear, if your partner seems at all hesitant you should stop what you’re doing. But the legal/policy standard needs to be a bit more objective.
You can’t criminalize all less-than-perfect sex. You can’t even criminalize all abusive sex. There needs to be a clear standard of adjudication for such a serious crime with such serious consequences. The standards need to be clear, concrete, and objective. Even though sex is none of those things in reality.
@SERIOUSLY? She was RAPED. WHAT IS SO HARD TO UNDERSTAND ABOUT THAT
@SERIOUSLY? Again This is in response to Anons above “this does not feel like justice” post
@Anon again It’s that logic that led to witch hunts and lynchings. She may very well have been raped, but we have a legal process for a reason. Public shaming, and the kangaroo court of public opinion, such as yours, does not serve justice, and one of the most prized rights we all possess is that of presumption of innocence, lest people like you might have his head on a stake.
@theword his images can be obtained on youtube where he was interviewed making a movie
@Here. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HHHKrk_YnXI
@Anonymous Great, time to grab your pitchforks, everyone. What else should we be doing, other than preemptively ruining a potentially innocent man’s reputation?
@mouse For Dad Films
@Anonymous no wonder this guy is a rapist. he should’ve joined For Mom Films or For Parents Films
@Anon This does not feel like justice, but vengeance. This man has not been proven guilty of any crime, and his case was dismissed by the school. Emma seems to be using her publicity merely to shame this individual, and if she had any interest in actually convicting him, she should have done so long ago, when evidence could be reviewable and the story was much more coherent. He has every right to a defamation lawsuit. Bring on the downvotes.
@SERIOUSLY? (Seriously) She was RAPED. WHAT IS SO HARD TO UNDERSTAND ABOUT THAT
@no she ALLEGES that she was raped.
i’m not saying the guy was innocent – but nor should he be presumed guilty just because she said so. We don’t know the facts here. There have been cases of vengeful ex-girlfriends making false rape accusations. I’m sure you can think of more.
@but why would “vengeful ex-girlfriends” be the more probable case? I just don’t understand why people would believe that someone is less likely a victim of abuse and more a vindictive hysteric who would go through all this trouble.
@Anonymous Where did he say it was more probable, as opposed to merely possible? It is not *at all* unprecedented for rape allegations to be proven false; you seem to dismiss this possibility offhand (after all, as you say, how *likely* is it to be false–why wold she go through all the trouble)? Well, as we all know, the effort you put into making a claim is a definite measure of your claim’s veracity.
@Anonymous Let’s be serious, this guy most definitely raped Emma as well as at least two other women (we’ve all read the Bwog story). But as much as it pains me to say, this guy deserves his day in court and deserves the same constitutional protections we grant to all people accused of committing a crime, among them the presumption of innocence.
That being said, I highly doubt Emma would go to all this trouble–going to the university, then appealing the case, then filing a complaint with the Dept. of Education, then going to the media, then finally going to the police–if her aim all along was to just slander his name.
@Anonymous Actually, even a glance at the Blue & White story shows that he did not rape the two other complainants in any reasonable sense of the word. One of them said she had a relationship with him which, while consensual, was emotionally manipulative and hurtful. The other said he grabbed her in a basement at a party and tried to kiss her, but she rebuffed him. There simply is no basis for calling him a serial rapist.
Ignoring the facts is all too common in this debate. It is one of the reasons why many people, like me, who are basically inclined to sympathize with the victims, are nevertheless appalled by the hysteria and the calls for mob justice that have gripped Columbia in recent weeks.
@Fed_Up There are also cases where human beings bite dogs, but they are ALSO rare & yet get all the publicity. Stop lying about rape in that fashion.
@Anonymous Seriously? (Seriously.) What is so hard to understand about the need to prove allegations? Someone claiming he/she was raped does not itself constitute RAPE. Calm the f down.
@Anonymous calling someone a rapist when they rape someone is not defamation.
@Devils advocate Hate to do this…
but Prove it
Civil cases use preponderance of evidence too. He has a good case. No evidence, lots of rumor and innuendo, was not found responsible by the university (much easier to be found responsible here than any court). She’s clearly profiting from it with respect to publicity. This can get ugly quickly.
@sad to agree with you, but... I hate agree with you, but I think you’re right.
Take it from a person who’s gone through this process with the NYPD and had to repeat her story more times than was comfortable. They’re big on evidence. So especially since this case is so old, it’s going to be very hard to prove this because there’s nothing to pin this guy to the crime. He’s also not a registered offender, so he’s very fresh faced and easier to write off as innocent. They’re going to have to depend solely on her testimony. Now rapists have gone to jail based on testimony alone. But taking into consideration that this man has already been deemed innocent by the university and he’s already been anonymously defamed through the fliers, it’ll be easier for people to take his side. Add in the fact that the NYPD seems to already find her story dubious, I fear for how much justice Emma is going to get.
I wholeheartedly believe her story and think that she should be getting some closure by seeing this man punished. But taking into consideration the way the University handles these cases and how the NYPD handles them, I’m not optimistic about this ending happily.
@UNBELIEVABLE Does no one understand the sheer bravery this girl is showing by coming forward with her story at all?? Some victims are so horrified and ashamed of what happened to them that they don’t say anything. She came forward and filed a report not only with Columbia, but with the NYPD. She’s had to repeat that traumatizing story SO MANY TIMES! Telling her “if she wanted to convict him she should have done so long ago” is so insensitive and ignorant I’m actually in awe of your ability to completely misunderstand this girl’s troubles.
Columbia writing him off as innocent is not a reflection of his innocence but a reflection upon their incompetence. People need to learn to take rape victims a little more seriously.
@Yes but They weren’t saying she wasn’t brave or that he was innocent. Only that, practically speaking, these factors don’t bode well for her in COURT. Where they only need a reasonable doubt to absolve him of charges.
@Rosebud How do you know? Is any acquittal only ever evidence of a broken system in your view? Anything less than a 100% conviction rate is simply justice denied to those accusers who didn’t win their cases?
@a. His name in the uni database is Paul Nungesser. He goes by Jean-Paul Ezhno on fb, and other places. I think that’s where the confusion’s coming in.
@lol This dude’s facebook says he “Studied at Korova Milk Bar.” You would think that someone being investigated for rape would have the sense not to make weird Clockwork Orange references in public.
@Anonymous It’s time for Mr. Nungesser to tell his side of the story. He has nothing to lose at this point.
@Are you an idiot? He has nothing to gain and everything to lose. Not a chance he says anything.
@Anonymous http://www.columbiaspectator.com/sites/default/files/For%20Dad_WEB.jpg
All the way to the right
@You mean to tell me that the “serial rapist” is not some athlete “frat boy” inebriate, but is actually a sensitive, worldly, intelligent, evolved hipster art student?
GASP
No fucking way, I read too much Jezebel to believe this! Only big galoot Frat stars rape women. According to feminists, it’s been proven by science that a minimum of 2 in 1 will assault a million girls within their four years in college.
I think Satan is scraping ice off his car windows this morning.
@Anonymous HE WAS ON THE CREW TEAM FRESHMAN YEAR
@Anonymous He should probably shave that mustache before court… Just saying, there’s no way it’s going to help his case
@anonymous why is the name not in the uni database?
a picture of the attacker would also be helpful
@Anonymous people can make their uni not appear in directory, which i’m sure he has after all of this.
@Anonymous Emma telling your story is brave and courageous. A little part of me though feels bad for the guy, stuff on the internet is permanent he’ll have to live with it the rest of his life (which I guess he does deserve).
@Anonymous I heard he is suing Emma for defamation of character for acting as an accomplice to the vandals. It’s ironic but I think he has a strong case against her since he has more evidence than she does.
@Anonymous Sadly, I think it is far more likely than not that Emma and her cohorts will be found guilty. An unsubstantiated accusation of rape falls under defamation per se, which means the plaintiff does not need to prove the injury has occurred. It’s an open-and-shut case.
Generally speaking, a person who brings a defamation lawsuit must prove the following.
1. The defendant published (or was involved in publishing) the statement.
– They won’t have a hard time proving this.. Emma wasn’t very subtle about her tactics.
2. The statement is about the plaintiff.
– Proving this is trivial as their names are on the flyer.
3. The statement harmed the reputation of the plaintiff
– A rape accusation falls under “defamation per se.” All states except Arizona, Arkansas, Missouri, and Tennessee recognize that some categories of false statements are so innately harmful that they are considered to be defamatory per se. In the common law tradition, damages for such false statements are presumed and do not have to be proven.
4. The statement was published with some level of fault
– The plaintiff will need to prove that the defendant acted negligently.
5. The statement was published without any applicable privilege.
– All matters pertaining to the office of judicial affairs are confidential by nature. Moreover, the University found the plaintiff not responsible, so Emma’s actions constitute recklessness, and thus, malice.
When the plaintiff in a defamation lawsuit is a private figure and the allegedly defamatory statements relate to a matter of legitimate public concern, the plaintiff must prove that the defendant acted “in a grossly irresponsible manner without due consideration for the standards of information gathering and dissemination ordinarily followed by responsible parties.” Chapadeau v. Utica Observer-Dispatch, 38 N.Y.S.2d 196, 199 (N.Y. 1975).
This standard, which is a higher bar than negligence but lower than actual malice, focuses on an objective evaluation of the defendant’s actions rather than looking at the defendant’s state of mind at the time of publication.
If a plaintiff succeeds in proving defamation, he or she is entitled to recover what is called compensatory damage, which is the payment of money to compensate the plaintiff for the wrong that has been done. This includes not only out-of-pocket expenses, but also personal humiliation, mental anguish and suffering, and lost wages and benefits if the defamation caused the plaintiff to lose employment. In limited circumstances, a plaintiff may also be able to recover punitive damages, which are awarded in addition to compensatory damages and are intended to punish the defendant.
@Anonymous The above is incorrect. While an accusation of a crime would indeed be considered per se defamatory, defamation isn’t actually illegal if the defamatory statements are true, and the burden of proof is on the plaintiff to prove that they are false.
@Anonymous wrong again. burden of proof is only on those accusing public individuals. both defendants are legally considered private citizens.
@Anonymous So proud of you emma
@brief summary first time: let’s have sex. ok.
second time: let’s have sex. ok.
third time: let’s have sex. can we do anal? ok.
(20 min later) anal hurts so nvm you rape
@direct quote from paul's other victim “we were dating and when he would have sex with me he would be rough and sometimes i would cry. Only months later when we ended it, I decided it was not consensual.”
@Fed_Up Stop lying. As proof of the fact that you are lying, I call witness to the fact that the ONLY place you can find this “direct quote” is FROM YOUR POST.
@Anonymous too late. damage is done. people won’t return to this post, so I win. LOL
@Anonymous I should press charges for every bruise i got on my dick because of girls who use their fucking teeth. the bitemarks prove it was violent and nonconsensual
@^ track these anon comments, they are from the same person