Lawsuit alleges Liberty University failed to investigate allegations of rape and sexual assault

LYNCHBURG, Va. (WDBJ) - A former Liberty University student has filed a lawsuit against the university, alleging it failed to investigate rape allegations.

A former student, who is being identified as Jane Doe, filed the lawsuit in federal court Wednesday.

Doe alleges that on April 27, 2021, she was raped by another Liberty University student after attending a party at the Oasis Apartment Complex where excessive underage drinking occurred. WDBJ7 will not name the alleged abuser at this time, as he hasn’t been charged.

The suit says that Jane Doe’s academic standing suffered after the incident, saying she was ostracized from the university community, and accused by the administration of violating the “Liberty Way”. Liberty’s code of student conduct prohibits underage drinking.

Doe alleges she told the university about the incident, but says the university violated Title IX by failing to provide her help after she reported the incident. She also alleges she was put on academic probation on May 21, 2021.

Court documents allege doe was unable to make good grades after the incident because “due to Liberty’s complete failure to provide reasonable accommodations to Plaintiff or engage in any interactive process at all to provide her with reasonable accommodations for her immediate mental, psychological, and physical disabilities resulting from the rape and assault, including but not limited to physical trauma, post-traumatic stress disorder, and depression.”

WDBJ7 reached to Liberty University for comment and got the following statement:

“The university has not reviewed the lawsuit and therefore declines to make a specific, public comment on the suit at this time. Liberty University will certainly address these claims in court,” according to a spokesperson.

This is one of the latest cases against Liberty after a lawsuit last summer involving 12 women and one last November both allege the university violated Title IX by failing to properly investigate sexual assaults.