Rape Suit Against WPI Dismissed By Federal Judge

WORCESTER, MA—A civil suit alleging rape involving a complaint against Worcester Polytechnic Institute has been dismissed five years after the incident.

A federal judge cited a recommendation by a magistrate judge that the case be dismissed against WPI, reports the Worcester Telegram and Gazette.

A security guard at a San Juan, Puerto Rico, condo complex was convicted of the 2012 rape of the female student. WPI drew outcry from advocates when its attorneys employed a "shared blame" defense strategy, alleging the victim was partly responsible because she put herself in harm's way. They alleged that the student was drunk and followed the assaulter and was therefore partly at fault.

WPI's president then issued a statement that the college didn't control any legal tactics because its attorneys worked for the school's insurance provider, not the school itself. A WPI lawyer did, however, work on the case.

The dispute has lingered in a Puerto Rican court for three years, with the victim not bringing WPI into the suit-rather the owner of the condominium where the rape occurred, arguing that the college was liable partly because it didn't follow study-abroad guidelines. The victim is seeking $4.7 million in the case.

>>>>Read the full story in the Worcester Telegram and Gazette.

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