YPSILANTI, Mich., July 11, 2007
Campus Cover-Up In Student's Murder?
Students Were Not Informed Young Woman Had Been Killed
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CBS News national correspondent Tracy Smith reports on one such case in Michigan.
Universities are supposed to let students know when a crime has been committed on campus so they can protect themselves. But in this case, the whole community, including the victim's family, was kept in the dark for months.
Eastern Michigan University is a close-knit campus of about 24,000 students, and last fall 22-year-old Laura Dickinson was thrilled to be one of them.
"She made a home there. She was very happy there," remembers Laura's father Bob.
Her hometown of Hastings, where her family owns a coffee shop, is about a two-hour drive from the school. It was too far away in her parents' minds, but Laura assured them she would be OK.
On Dec. 15, their peace of mind was shattered when Laura was found dead in her dorm room. The school called the Dickinsons with the news.
At the time, the parents weren't sure what had happened. "Not knowing anything what was going on, we assumed she might have had a heart attack, she might have had an aneurism, who knows what?" Bob Dickinson remembers.
The truth was something different: According to the medical examiner's report, Laura had been found naked from the waist down, with a pillow over her head. It clearly said "foul play suspected." But no one told the Dickinsons.
"Somebody chose to say nothing and that's where it all started," says Bob.
The next day, the university sent out an e-mail to the campus community, saying there was no reason to suspect foul play in Laura's death, and that the campus was safe. Students, such as Jessica Richardson, read it and felt reassured.
Click here for more about the Clery Act, and to see what schools are doing. For more on what Eastern Michigan University is doing to improve their security procedures, and for the Department of Education report on their EMU investigation, visit emich.edu.
Then on Feb. 23, another student, 20-year-old Orange Taylor, was arrested and charged with entering Laura Dickinson's dorm, sexually assaulting and killing her.
For more than two months, students had no idea that a classmate had been raped and murdered in her dorm room, or that her alleged killer was another student, still walking around on campus.
"I automatically was upset beyond belief. It really concerned me. I felt like I had been deceived," says Jessica Richardson.
"We trust these individuals with our safety, with our well being. And if we're not informed that there's a possible threat on campus, it's very irresponsible," says Greg Jones, the student body president.
When the Dickinsons heard the news, it was a second horrible blow. "That we had to go through hearing my daughters' death twice," Bob says.
The Michigan Board of Regents commissioned an investigation into what the school knew and when; the results, contained in a 600-page report, were damning.
According to Richard Hewlett, attorney for the independent investigation from law firm Butzel Long, at least some of the university officials knew that Laura's death may have been a homicide.
An investigation by the Department of Education found that the university violated what's known as the Clery Act, a federal law that requires schools to let students know about crimes committed in and around campus that might be a threat to their safety.
The university denied CBS News' request for an interview. But the president of the university has apologized, saying "never again will such a confounding series of mistakes be made on my watch," and issued a new plan to improve safety.
"The steps that EMU is taking to do that are commendable, what they did for us wasn't," says Laura's father Bob.
Asked how he would describe what the university did for them, he says, "Shameful."
Bob Dickinson knows it's too late for Laura nut hopes that in her death, she might be able to save other students' lives.
"If it did one … that would be amazing," Bob says, referring to saving one life. "Yeah, if a whole campus saw their faults, saw what they were doing wrong before an event occurred and fixed it, and prevented something like what happened to us. That'd be the icing on the cake."
Orange Taylor's trial is scheduled for October. He has admitted having been in Laura's room, but denies raping or killing her. And the school will respond to the Department of Education's report this month. But the university will have to do a lot of work to win back the trust of the community.
At EMU there has been fallout: the dean of student affairs has been suspended, and just last month, the school's faculty council called for the EMU president to resign.
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Yeah... I see what you mean, you never ever hear minorities, women, non-Christians or homosexuals complaining about how tough THEY have it in this world... and you certainly would never hear them suggest they need special laws based on race, color, gender or creed...
In the arena of whiny crybabies... white heterosexual men are the very last in line, and the only fair game left for racists and sexists. Sure, the hypocrisy is annoying - but it's still better than standing in line to get your "I'm a victim" badge... Then again, if white heterosexual men were to gain "victim" status - who'd be left to blame? Might be a good way to do away with all this nonsense...
That's a tough one, ya see - hate crimes are supposed to be levied against white males only, or conversely to provide greater protection under the law (as opposed to equal protection under the law) towards... well, basically everyone but white heterosexual males. So in THIS particular case, while you DO have a female victim, you also have a black accused perpetrator... so charging him with a hate crime is not a viable option.
As a person born in Detroit and knowing how long it takes to get to Ypsilanti, I am offended by the comment that EMU is in Suburban Detroit! College campus life is close knit, regardless of the local.
A rape is a rape, regardless of where it happens and murder is murder. Don't muddy the water...but discuss the situation.
Yes, prosecute but lets not get too overly excited. Prosecute him for the crime not something off like a hate crime.
Just b/c the article says "close-knit" does not mean the entire campus. I attened a campus that size and I have t say the group of students on my floor were very close knit. before judging pay attention and THINK!
Ps it is not editorializing - that woul dbe the wonderfully beautiful campus is full of studets who support one another!
Plus it's in Suburban Detroit. Nothing near Detroit is "close-knit." Quit playing on our emotions and quit editorializing.
- by gunnerv1 July 11, 2007 3:48 PM EDT
- I work on the campus where Wade Steffy died, The Provost has the check book open and waiting to fill in the amount the the Parents say!
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