The fourth student this academic year has announced an intention to have an open Honor trial, which will take place March 26, according to a press release issued by the Honor Committee Monday.
Approximately 45 tickets for the open trial are available this week at the Information Desk of Newcomb Hall. The tickets will be distributed on a first come, first serve basis.
The Committee does not release any information concerning the accused student, Honor Chair David Hobbs said.
Hobbs added that the accused student has the option of changing to a closed proceeding up until the date of the trial.
Two of the previous three announced trials were cancelled.
Before the Nov. 13 open trial which was carried through, there had not been an open trial in more than three years, making the recent influx in open trial announcements a unique occurrence.
"It's an anomaly," Honor Vice Chair for Trials Stewart Ackerly said. "It's harder to tell whether it's a trend or not."
Hobbs said he has no idea why there has been an increase in requests for open honor trials, but he expressed enthusiasm for the opportunities offered to the community by open trials.
"I think it's a great thing for Honor that people get a chance to see the trial process," Hobbs said.
The open trial that occurred Nov. 13 resulted in the acquittal of Lindsay McClung and Joe Schlingbaum on the basis of seriousness.
The student body voted in the spring elections that concluded before break to change the one criterion for an honor offense from "serious" to "not trivial," and this altered wording has gone into effect and will be applied to this trial, Ackerly said.
The jury, therefore, will vote first on the basis of act and intent. Should four-fifths of the panel find the accused student guilty of both, it will then vote on triviality, where only a simple majority is needed to constitute a guilty verdict.
Open honor trials are conducted in exactly the same manner as closed trials, Hobbs said.
The accused will choose a jury that is composed of all students, all Committee members or a combination of the two.
As with all honor trials, if the accused student is found guilty of an honor offense, he or she will be expelled from the University.
Read More
Shots fired reported at 100 block of Harmon Street, no injuries reported
By Thomas Baxter | 4 days agoThis is the first community alert of June.
Full Board discusses financial aid challenges, medical research and entrepreneurship
By Thomas Baxter | 5 days agoBoard members discussed the Pan-University Entrepreneurship Initiative, a project that aims to help develop more entrepreneurial ventures at the University.
Finance Committee approves 2024-25 operating budget and Major Capital Plan
By Zackary Holt | 5 days agoThe proposed 2024-25 fiscal year budget for the Academic Division includes a 6.8 percent increase in spending over the previous year.
