Michael Marshall, a student at Ohio University who was suspended for a semester due to his text messages to a female student, has now sued the college.
Marshall had met the girl in 2013 after he had transferred to the Honors Tutorial College. In the fall of the following year, the duo would “meet for studying and work-related discussions.”
That’s when Marshall began to “attempt to convince” the girl to begin a romantic relationship.
On Oct. 3, Marshall texted the female student saying: “I don’t know now what you think or feel. What I do know is that you are fabulously attractive and fabulously intelligent in that I know I can tell you all this and that nothing will change between us…”
The female responded that she “liked him a lot, but in a platonic way.”
Between Oct. 12 and late November, Marshall would continue to text the female in an attempt to convince her to be romantically involved with him, though they maintained a “friendly and cordial” relationship in class, according to court documents.
On Nov. 18, OU’s Office for Institutional Equity was notified of a complaint against Marshall, and the female alleged that her academic environment had been disrupted, though she didn’t feel unsafe. On Dec. 12, Marshall was notified that the office would be continuing with an investigation into the allegations. He was then suspended for a semester.
Marshall’s attorneys are now saying that OU’s sexual misconduct policy violates free speech, according to court documents, and that his constitutional rights have been violated.
Court documents show that “the gender of the alleged victim was the motivating factor in the decision to impose harsh discipline upon Marshall.”
Attorneys said the atmosphere at the school is one “where those who lodge a complaint of sexual assault are immediately treated as ‘survivors.'”
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