The above image is taken from a Change.org petition signed by 2,500+ people urging USC Interim President Wanda Austin to reinstate Premjee.
On July 26th, 2017, in a pretrial hearing for a criminal case against USC student Armaan Premjee, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Michael Pastor told prosecutors they had not met the “minimal” burden of “reasonable suspicion,” and accordingly tossed out the case. Security footage from a nightclub showing the rape accuser leading Premjee by the hand into a car and to her hotel room played a substantial role.
Judge Pastor went on to say:
I look to the totality of the evidence in this case, not any individual aspect of evidence. And as I evaluate the totality of evidence from the initial encounter between Arshia [the accuser] and the defendant, Mr. Premjee, I believe that there was consent and there remained consent throughout the unfortunate incidents in this case. There is no indication of any withdrawal of consent. There is a very strong indication that the alleged victim in this case was the initiator of any conduct between the defendant and the alleged victim. …
Eight months later, USC’s Office of Equity & Diversity (OED) found Premjee guilty anyway and expelled him. He had six credits left before graduation. In addition to disregarding the video evidence, USC did not allow his attorney and advisor Harland Braun to speak during administrative hearings. When Braun attempted to anyway USC showed him the door and, per a USC statement, told him to instead “send another lawyer from his firm or another individual of his client’s choosing” if Premjee wished to continue having an advisor.
This is the same USC where Title IX Coordinator Gretchen Means remarked to a colleague, “Does that college motherfucker know who I am?” when another student she expelled initiated an appeal. Means’ bias was also a substantial factor in yet another case in which USC was ordered to pay $112,000 in attorney’s fees.
Now, following a hearing on December 18th, USC has reinstated Premjee. Remarkably, this reinstatement was in fact initiated by USC. The Daily Trojan explains:
…due to recent California court rulings requiring new investigative procedures, Judge Elizabeth White granted USC’s request to halt legal proceedings on Premjee’s appeal at the hearing. The University decided to reinstate Premjee and reopen the investigation of the case to ensure fair and lawful adjudication under new regulations.
Those “recent California court rulings” referred to are almost certainly the Court of Appeals ruling against USC in another case a mere seven days prior in which the Court reversed the Superior Court’s decision, granted John Doe’s writ of administrative mandate and – as in the other Doe v. USC case – awarded attorney’s costs.
Can USC be taught to play fair? Or will they, à la their neighbor California State University, soon post litigation reports in their online Board of Trustees meeting records highlighting the excessive spike in the costs of defending litigation by students wrongly disciplined for sexual misconduct?
This case is in our Title IX Lawsuits Database.
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More from Title IX for All
Accused Students Database
Research due process and similar lawsuits by students accused of Title IX violations (sexual assault, harassment, dating violence, stalking, etc.) in higher education.
OCR Resolutions Database
Research resolved Title IX investigations of K-12 and postsecondary institutions by the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR).
Attorneys Directory
A basic directory for looking up Title IX attorneys, most of whom have represented parties in litigation by accused students.
The above image is taken from a Change.org petition signed by 2,500+ people urging USC Interim President Wanda Austin to reinstate Premjee.
On July 26th, 2017, in a pretrial hearing for a criminal case against USC student Armaan Premjee, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Michael Pastor told prosecutors they had not met the “minimal” burden of “reasonable suspicion,” and accordingly tossed out the case. Security footage from a nightclub showing the rape accuser leading Premjee by the hand into a car and to her hotel room played a substantial role.
Judge Pastor went on to say:
I look to the totality of the evidence in this case, not any individual aspect of evidence. And as I evaluate the totality of evidence from the initial encounter between Arshia [the accuser] and the defendant, Mr. Premjee, I believe that there was consent and there remained consent throughout the unfortunate incidents in this case. There is no indication of any withdrawal of consent. There is a very strong indication that the alleged victim in this case was the initiator of any conduct between the defendant and the alleged victim. …
Eight months later, USC’s Office of Equity & Diversity (OED) found Premjee guilty anyway and expelled him. He had six credits left before graduation. In addition to disregarding the video evidence, USC did not allow his attorney and advisor Harland Braun to speak during administrative hearings. When Braun attempted to anyway USC showed him the door and, per a USC statement, told him to instead “send another lawyer from his firm or another individual of his client’s choosing” if Premjee wished to continue having an advisor.
This is the same USC where Title IX Coordinator Gretchen Means remarked to a colleague, “Does that college motherfucker know who I am?” when another student she expelled initiated an appeal. Means’ bias was also a substantial factor in yet another case in which USC was ordered to pay $112,000 in attorney’s fees.
Now, following a hearing on December 18th, USC has reinstated Premjee. Remarkably, this reinstatement was in fact initiated by USC. The Daily Trojan explains:
…due to recent California court rulings requiring new investigative procedures, Judge Elizabeth White granted USC’s request to halt legal proceedings on Premjee’s appeal at the hearing. The University decided to reinstate Premjee and reopen the investigation of the case to ensure fair and lawful adjudication under new regulations.
Those “recent California court rulings” referred to are almost certainly the Court of Appeals ruling against USC in another case a mere seven days prior in which the Court reversed the Superior Court’s decision, granted John Doe’s writ of administrative mandate and – as in the other Doe v. USC case – awarded attorney’s costs.
Can USC be taught to play fair? Or will they, à la their neighbor California State University, soon post litigation reports in their online Board of Trustees meeting records highlighting the excessive spike in the costs of defending litigation by students wrongly disciplined for sexual misconduct?
This case is in our Title IX Lawsuits Database.
Thank You for Reading
If you like what you have read, feel free to sign up for our newsletter here:
Support Our Work
About the Author
Related Posts
8 Comments
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You should really define “USC” somewhere in the article.
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Robert, I live in Australia and have never been to USC but I know that it means University of Southern California. I’m sure Google knows as well..
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university of south Carolina
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Hey man, you must have had a late night drinking. It is the University of Southern California
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“You should really define “USC” somewhere in the article” was a polite, constructive criticism. You knew about it, but don’t assume everyone else does. Also, you find everything on Google, but I feel that is a poor excuse.
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These Diversity and Equity tribunals are kangaroo courts put in place NOT to find fact but to enact a political agenda. Gretchen Means sounds like an authoritarian Nazi, totally unconcerned with facts and justice, and one can only hope that he was fired and blacklisted from academia. She is truly a vindictive and evil person.
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Came to the comments to express that same sentiment! Gretchen Dahlinger Means appears to be a menace and is using the ridiculous Title IX as a tool to push malice into the world.
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Ahh yes, USC in the context of the Los Angelese circuit of appeals. Must be the University of South Carolina!
Comments are closed.
More from Title IX for All
Accused Students Database
Research due process and similar lawsuits by students accused of Title IX violations (sexual assault, harassment, dating violence, stalking, etc.) in higher education.
OCR Resolutions Database
Research resolved Title IX investigations of K-12 and postsecondary institutions by the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR).
Attorneys Directory
A basic directory for looking up Title IX attorneys, most of whom have represented parties in litigation by accused students.
You should really define “USC” somewhere in the article.
Robert, I live in Australia and have never been to USC but I know that it means University of Southern California. I’m sure Google knows as well..
university of south Carolina
Hey man, you must have had a late night drinking. It is the University of Southern California
“You should really define “USC” somewhere in the article” was a polite, constructive criticism. You knew about it, but don’t assume everyone else does. Also, you find everything on Google, but I feel that is a poor excuse.
These Diversity and Equity tribunals are kangaroo courts put in place NOT to find fact but to enact a political agenda. Gretchen Means sounds like an authoritarian Nazi, totally unconcerned with facts and justice, and one can only hope that he was fired and blacklisted from academia. She is truly a vindictive and evil person.
Came to the comments to express that same sentiment! Gretchen Dahlinger Means appears to be a menace and is using the ridiculous Title IX as a tool to push malice into the world.
Ahh yes, USC in the context of the Los Angelese circuit of appeals. Must be the University of South Carolina!