NORFOLK, Va. (WAVY) – Thursday morning, attorneys presented several motions in court on a lawsuit stemming from an alleged 2012 rape at Virginia Wesleyan College (VWC).
In court documents, the alleged victim, referred to as Jane Doe, claims Virginia Wesleyan created an atmosphere that led to her rape on campus in August 2012, three days into her freshman year. So, she’s suing the college for $10 million.
The school says it’s not responsible, if a rape took place. But, if they lose the lawsuit, they want the male student accused of rape to be liable for damages — even though too much time has passed for him to be charged with a crime.
VWC’s attorney, Mark Nanavati, told 10 On Your Side, “We’d like to have all the claims against the college dismissed.”
Jane Doe’s attorney, Jonathan Halperin, said, “Right now, the school says that it owes no duty to protect any of its students, and that’s the way it’s behaving, and I think that needs to change.”
Halperin, Nanavati, and George Dancigers, who represents the accused male student referred to as Robert Roe, all filed motions in court Thursday.
The school is asking a judge to throw the case out altogether. Meanwhile, Jane Doe’s attorneys want Roe dismissed from the case.
“You can’t, under the law, ask an intentional [inaudible] like the student who did the raping to indemnify the school for it’s own negligence. That’s not legally proper, in my view,” Halperin said.
Outside of court, Roe’s attorneys said they also want their client dismissed from the case, but the college disagrees.
“If some find or fact down the road decides that the plaintiff’s version of the events is the more credible one and believable one, does Roe have an obligation to the college, financially, to participate in those damages?” Nanavati said.
That’s something they all want a judge to decide.
It could be several weeks before we find out the judge’s decision on the motions filed. In the meantime, attorneys are continuing to gather evidence and do interviews to prepare for the trial expected next year.
