A Federal research recently reveals that sexual misconduct was ongoing at the University of Southern California (USC), which lead to the setup of a sexual violence investigation committee.
According to the research, the University declined to scrutinize the allegations of sexual misconduct or even do anything to prevent it from happening again, which may have allowed female students to be subjected to continuing sex discrimination.
The USC sexual violence investigation, lead to new decisions that would fix all of its procedures for reporting these allegations. This came after the sexual violence investigation discovered that a particular gynecologist who has been working at its health center for decades took advantage of female students.
Kenneth Marcus, assistant secretary of education for civil rights, during a press briefing, of the findings of the sexual violence investigation said that some of them were quite graphic, and the evidence is undeniable.
According to him, it is the most shocking case of sexual misconduct the institution has ever witness.
How the sexual violence investigation occurred
From 2000 to 2009, five patients had reported to USC that Dr George Tyndall, who was employed by the University since 1989, sexually harassed them.
Later, four additional patients also made the same complaint to the University of mistreatment by Tyndall. They narrated some instances in which he made inappropriate comments about the physical attributes of patients’ bodies during pelvic exams.
In 2016, there were complaints that Tyndall performed pelvic examinations without using gloves.
The University, however, failed to investigate these complaints. They also failed to examine complaints put forward by chaperones and the nurse supervisor when Tyndall penetrated patients with his fingers during examinations and full-body skin checks.
In the same 2016, when USC uncovered over 200 pictures of patients’ genitals in Tyndall’s office, it refused to investigate whether taking photos of patients and having them in possession constituted sex discrimination.
Also, the report states how the school declined to find the remaining photographs that Tyndall confessed to taking from 1989 to 2010.
Surprisingly, it was discovered that USC permitted him to keep on seeing patients for a day and a half after they found the photos.
Tyndall resigned in June 2017, and the Los Angeles Police Department started the most significant investigation of sexual abuse it has ever performed.
In May 2018, the Education Department’s Office for Civil Rights tried to deduce USC’s Title IX compliance as regards the reports of sexual misconduct by Tyndall.
Title IX is the statute that protects against discrimination based on sex at educational institutions that get federal funding. However, in July 2019, Tyndall pleaded not guilty to charges of sexually abusing 16 patients.
Conclusions of investigation
Kenneth Marcus, assistant secretary of education for civil rights, noted how he is disheartened by how uncooperative university officials were with the research, although eventually pleased with the terms of the agreement.
According to him, many issues were uncovered by the investigation as regards record-keeping.
This means it is hard to deduce with certainty if documents were deliberately withheld or they were not just brought to the notice of the Office for Civil Rights.
Because of what Marcus referred to as “systemic failures” in its treatment of allegations of sexual misconduct made against Tyndall, the Education Department is instructing the school to perform a formal analysis of existing and past employees to deduce if they reacted appropriately to reports of sex discrimination.
Also, to give necessary Title IX training for staff and enable the Office for Civil Rights to regulate its compliance for three years.
Notably, USC is expected to mend its Title IX procedures. Asides the Education Department’s investigation, the University in June 2019 consented to a $215 million class-action settlement for the numerous women Tyndall treated.
