Michigan State University has recommended that former basketball player Brock Washington be permanently barred from classes and banned from campus for two years after finding him responsible for violating the school's sexual misconduct policy, according to documents obtained by ESPN.
The Michigan State Office of Institutional Equity determined that a "preponderance of the evidence" established that Washington sexually assaulted a woman, according to a document obtained Monday by ESPN. A separate Aug. 12 report of the OIE's findings obtained by ESPN states that on Jan. 19, 2020, Washington "engaged in oral and vaginal sexual penetration with [a woman] without consent" while she was incapacitated.
Washington has 10 days to appeal the recommendations, or they go into effect. One of his attorneys, Mary Chartier, told ESPN that he "absolutely intends to appeal the finding and sanction" and that he is "innocent of the allegation."
In its sanctioning report, Michigan State recommends that Washington be permanently prevented from registering for or attending classes and residing on campus, according to the document ESPN obtained Monday. He also would be prohibited from using or visiting university facilities for two years. Failure to abide by the sanctions could result in his arrest.
The recommendations address "the potential for future similar behavior by Respondent [Washington] on campus and prohibit Respondent from returning to campus for academic or other endeavors."
In January, a woman told Michigan State University police and school investigators that she was sexually assaulted by Washington at his apartment. After an investigation, police told prosecutors that they had probable cause that Washington raped the woman while she was too intoxicated to consent, according to a police report and emails obtained by ESPN via a public records request to the Ingham County prosecutor's office.
But prosecutors declined to file charges because the case did "not meet the burden of proof that we must present to a jury," according to a statement the prosecutor's office gave to ESPN this year. In March, the woman asked the Michigan attorney general's office to investigate her case; a spokesperson told ESPN that the investigation is ongoing.
Washington has not been enrolled at Michigan State since the spring, according to the document obtained Monday by ESPN. The woman is not a Michigan State student but attended a nearby college and lives in East Lansing.
When reached Tuesday, a spokeswoman from Michigan State did not provide any additional comment.
Washington did not agree to be interviewed by Michigan State Title IX investigators. One of his attorneys, George Brookover, wrote to Title IX investigator Erin Martin in April saying that Washington would not participate in the investigation until the school addressed his concerns about the process and released a set of requested records, according to a letter included in the Aug. 12 OIE report.
Brookover and Washington's other attorney, Chartier, in July told Michigan State's Title IX investigator that "the allegations of assault are false," according to the OIE report. They also wrote that because Washington was no longer a student at Michigan State and the woman wasn't a Michigan State student, "these allegations have no effect on the university."
Washington did not take part in the process to determine sanctions; an email from his attorney to investigators stated Washington "cannot outline a proposed sanction because he did not assault the claimant ..."
The woman told OIE investigators in a statement obtained by ESPN that "I can't help but find myself still in fear while living in East Lansing ... With a campus ban and no contact order in place it will allow me some comfort knowing that he won't have the ability of harming other [women] and it allows me to continue my journey in my healing process."
This was not the first sexual assault allegation against Washington. On Aug. 31, 2017, a female Michigan State student reported to police that Washington had groped and kissed her against her will and tried to drag her to the floor in a dorm. Michigan State's Title IX office received a report of the allegation a day later.
A criminal investigation resulted in MSU police recommending in December 2017 that Washington be charged with fourth-degree criminal sexual conduct and unlawful entry. He pleaded guilty to a reduced charge of misdemeanor assault in March 2018 and was allowed to remain on the team and on campus.
In October 2017, Michigan State's Title IX office found Washington not responsible for sexual misconduct.
In the incident from this year, the woman reported to police and university investigators that she and her roommate met Washington at a bar and went with him to his apartment where they all drank alcohol together in the kitchen. They later moved to Washington's bedroom. The woman said her next memory was "of waking up in her own bed in her apartment the following morning," according to the university's report.
In their investigation, MSU investigators used a statement Washington gave to campus police in January -- in which he told police he had sex and oral sex with the woman in his room that night -- as well as police interviews with Washington's teammates and the woman's roommate. The school also used text messages, surveillance video from Washington's building, the woman's sexual assault exam report, and an interview with the Uber driver who took her and her roommate home that night, according to the OIE report.
The report states that even though the woman was intoxicated when she arrived at Washington's apartment, she was not incapacitated until after Washington started pouring himself and the two women shots of whisky, which they all drank together. At that point, the woman became incapacitated and unable to consent to sex, the report states.
The university report notes that Washington and the woman's roommate were "more likely than not" dishonest with both the woman and police when they were first asked about the night "because they were aware of [the woman's] condition and wanted to avoid consequences for their actions."
Washington played in seven games during the 2018-19 season and in nine games this past season, the last being the Spartans' 71-42 loss at Purdue on Jan. 12. The woman reported her alleged assault on Jan. 19. After the Spartans lost to Indiana on Jan. 23, coach Tom Izzo said during his postgame media conference that he had suspended Washington from the team, but he did not say why.