Syracuse Players on Probation for Being Cleared of Accusations of Wrongdoing

A quiet, nasty story that stayed below the regular media in the spring, was that several Syracuse basketball players were involved in a sexual assault investigation. Eventually it was revealed that there was an investigation involving starting point guard Jonny Flynn and bench players Scoop Jardine and Rick Jackson. Ultimately the Onondaga County Grand Jury hearing the charges, found that the allegations did not rise to the standards of criminal activity and the matter was dismissed.

That was only the criminal side of things. The next phase was going before the Syracuse University Judicial Hearing Board. This was much like the judicial review panel at Pacific University that suspended three players for the year after the alleged victim declined to file charges of sexual assault.

The judicial review panel at many universities have come under fire for the way they conduct the hearing.

You have already been cleared of all charges in a government court room by a jury of your peers. Still, you now have to stand in front of a panel of strangers who will not take that legal decision into account and will determine your fate based on not only the words of your accuser but on yours as well. You will not be allowed to have a lawyer stand next to you and advise you on legal issues or your rights. If you don't testify, it's practically an admission of guilt, so you have no choice. If you want your accuser cross examined, you have to do it yourself.

At least one player at Pacific is rumored to be planning a lawsuit against Pacific for his suspension. At Syracuse, Jonny Flynn was also prepared to file suit if he was suspended or kicked out of school.
On the day of the hearing, Scoop Jardine did not appear. It seems his father's car broke down on the drive to Syracuse from their home in Philadelphia. Not the best planning by Jardine. A matter like this suggests trying to get back to Syracuse a couple days early, just to go over with his lawyer how to conduct himself and what he wants to say. Not stay at home hiding from all of this until the last minute.

Ultimately the Syracuse University Judicial Hearing Board cleared them of any wrong doing but went with a punishment for what didn't happen -- but could have.

But the panel concluded some disciplinary action was warranted because the players' conduct could have threatened the mental health of the female student.

The players -- Jonny Flynn, Antonio "Scoop" Jardine and Richard Jackson -- and a fourth student who was not on the basketball team all were ordered to be placed on university probation through the Spring 2011 semester. They also were all ordered to perform 30 hours of community service on campus, participate in gender-sensitivity and domestic violence educational programs, undergo evaluation to determine if counseling is needed and to stay away from the female student, who no longer attends SU.

That or they just felt they needed to punish them for having to go before the panel to face the accusations. At worst they seem to say, "No you didn't actually do anything wrong, but you were very close."