A crowd gathered this afternoon on the Stanford University campus during a Faculty Senate meeting, as students passed out fliers that said, “#StandWithLeah” and demanding the school change its policy on how it handles sexual assault cases.
The rally happened one day after Stanford announced that it will not expel a student it found responsible for sexual assault, rejecting an appeal from the victim, Leah Francis, who thinks the university treated her alleged assailant too leniently.
“The administration dangerously mishandled my case,” says Francis, who organized today’s rally. “We need punishment that rises to the magnitude of the assault.”
On April 25, a five-person panel unanimously found the student responsible for sexual misconduct through a disciplinary process called the Alternative Review Process. The panel was set up in 2010 to deal with allegations of misconduct relating to sexual assault, sexual harassment, relationship violence and stalking.
Alhough Francis filed a police report in Juneau, Alaska, where she said the attack occurred on Jan. 1, 2014, the case is still being reviewed and charges have not been filed. The action of the university does not reflect one way or another on any potential criminal charges in the case.