University Responds to FUEMS Misconduct Claims

University+President+Rev.+Joseph+M.+McShane+addressed+the+question+of+Who+is+the+Fordham+community%3F+in+an+email+on+Oct.+15.

University President Rev. Joseph M. McShane addressed the question of “Who is the Fordham community?” in an email on Oct. 15.

By SOPHIE KOZUB

Following allegations of misconduct by Fordham University Emergency Medical Services (FUEMS) in handling an alleged sexual assault case in November, the University conducted an investigation and has released the findings to the Fordham Community.

In the statement from the Office of the President, the alleged sexual assault was referred to as “a dispute with a cab driver.”  The University stated the investigation found that “the students’ allegations against Public Safety officers and FUEMS staff were unfounded, and the evidence indicates that Public Safety officers treated the students with ‘respect and dignity.'”

The report from the investigators further stated that “the actions of Fordham University Emergency Medical Services and their interactions with [the students] in the early morning hours of November 11, 2015 was appropriate, measured and in accordance with Fordham University procedure and New York State Department of Health Bureau of Emergency Medical Services Protocols.”

The investigation of the incident was conducted by T&M Protection Resources, “a firm which employs former prosecutors and other law enforcement experts, and specializes in investigating claims of misconduct,” according to the email statement.  Fordham’s Department of Public Safety and the Office of Student Affairs were also part of the investigation, helping to conduct “interviews with 20 witnesses (including the student who made the allegations and her friends), and the review of dozens of documents and emails.”

The email statement concluded with the hope that the investigations findings “will reassure students, faculty, and staff alike that we have taken the student’s allegations seriously, and that our staff acted with the high level of professionalism and respect that the Fordham community expects and deserves.”

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