Report: Despite student’s successful lawsuit, due process concerns remain at SUNY Buffalo
By Samantha Harris November 13, 2018
In July, a New York state appellate court ruled that the State University of New York at Buffalo violated a student’s due process rights when it disciplined him for harassment and weapons possession without “any evidence, much less substantial evidence,†of his guilt.
The plaintiff in the case, Tyrone Hill, alleged that he was the victim of mistaken identity, and that the person who had pointed an Airsoft gun at several freshman members of UB’s football team was not Hill but rather one of his football teammates, Zachary Lefebvre. Although the police did not charge Hill in the incident, UB found him responsible and sentenced him to disciplinary probation, community service, and exclusion from on-campus housing. Hill sued UB to have the decision overturned, arguing that the university’s disciplinary process had violated his due process rights by, among other things, failing to give him adequate notice of the charges, not allowing him to cross-examine witnesses, and not allowing him active representation during his hearing. In finding for Hill, the court had some harsh words for the university:
https://www.thefire.org/report-despite-students-successful-lawsuit-due-process-concerns-remain-at-suny-buffalo/
