Cornell Student Accused of Rape Sues University Claiming Due Process Violations

Suspended Cornell student Wofgang Ballinger is suing Cornell claiming numerous violations of his due process rights and to prevent the University from making a formal decision regarding his case.

Back in February, Ballinger was suspended for an alleged sexual assault that occurred in his room in the Psi Upsilon fraternity house located on campus. Ballinger, who was enrolled in Cornell’s School of Hotel Administration, was the president of the fraternity chapter at the time.

According to the Ithaca Voice, Ballinger has been charged with first-degree attempted rape, first-degree criminal sexual act and first-degree sexual abuse. On Feb. 9, he was released on his own recognizance from Ithaca City Court and since has been barred from re-entering campus.

The Ithaca Voice continues with its report:

According to court documents filed May 6 with the Tompkins County Supreme Court, Ballinger filed a petition stating the following accusations, among many:

Cornell did not give Ballinger a statutory hearing, which he is requesting.
The investigator in the Cornell’s case against Ballinger has not met with the complainant, nor has the investigator “collected critical documents,” such as DNA evidence from a rape kit, interviews from third-party witnesses and text messages following the alleged incident.
That Cornell’s single-investigator model is flawed and unfair to defendants. The documents note, “Ballinger cannot effectively present his case when the investigator fails to gather or produce critical information.”
The documents request that, in light of these facts, Cornell be banned from adjudicating the case against Ballinger permanently. This means there is a request being made for the university to not make a formal decision regarding the case.

Records show that Ballinger had until Monday (today) to provide more information to the university in regard to the incident.

The documents filed May 6 say Ballinger denies the charged against him. A Tompkins County Court clerk said Monday that the case is still pending grand jury action by the District Attorney’s office. he has not been indicted.