Vignette
Two people who met at a party go to a bedroom and begin making out. The woman, who is intoxicated, says she doesn’t want to go any further than kissing. He assures her that it won’t, and they continue kissing for several minutes. Both parties are into it and undress each other. After 10 minutes, the man begins to fondle her and eventually proceeds to intercourse. She never physically resists or says ‘no,’ though she never says ‘yes’ either.
These students said yes…
Nick Haugland: ‘Yes, because she said no prior and he continued on anyway knowing that she didn’t want to go any further and he knew that she was f***** up. I don’t feel bad for the guy because he took what she said, and completely ignored it.’
Theresa Osborne: ‘Yes, because she’s intoxicated so she’s not in the right frame of mind and she did say no in the beginning. And, if I were a guy that would be enough to make me stop.’
Amanda Adas: ‘Yes, because although she didn’t say ‘no’ she made it clear she didn’t want it to go that far. She was intoxicated, not that that is always an excuse, but he responded and he knew.’
Cassanda Incerto: ‘Yes, because she said ‘no’ in the beginning. Saying ‘no’ once should be enough.’
Louis Maloni: ‘Since she said no to begin with, he should have known what she wanted. He should have stopped right from the beginning since he knew her intentions’.
Edlyn Ruiz: ‘She said she didn’t want it to go any further. She was intoxicated, so she wasn’t thinking.’
These students said no…
Jamie Sabellico: ‘It’s not rape because she just let it happen, she undressed him. She could have said stop right there.’
Gerard Sukhram: ‘No, because she was undressing him as well.’
DiRhonda Hills: ‘I don’t think it is because she didn’t say anything and went along with it ultimately. If it really was a problem, then she would’ve resisted.’
Amber Gleason: ‘Although she wasn’t in the right state of mind, she never made him stop either. Both parties were into it and her body language told a different story from what she had originally wanted.’
Dominick Hill: ‘It’s not rape because she was undressing him as well- if he was the only one taking her clothes off it would have been a different story. It doesn’t say much for her. What would happen if the guy was drunk too? I think it’s a double standard for women.’
Daniel M. Broskett: ‘In that situation I believe both parties should have acted more responsibly. However, I do not believe it to be considered rape. Reverse the situation, what then?’
UT’s Judicial Coordinator Mike Gilmer says…
‘As it states in the paragraph, the ‘Woman’ was intoxicated therefore unable to give consent according to UT policies. Regardless of what she may have said or did not say, the woman was in an altered state of mind and unable to give consent. By this example, there is enough information for the ‘He’ student to be charged with article 7 Personal Abuse (Under section A. Sexual Misconduct). The conduct board would then review the case to determine his responsibility and issue sanctions if necessary that are appropriate to the incident. As stated in the Student Rights and Responsibilities, if he is found responsible, he will be minimally placed on pending suspension. If he lives on campus, his campus community would be notified that he was found responsible for sexual misconduct (following his final level of appeal).’