The ongoing Baylor University sexual assault scandal has now been drawn out for years, with more and more details coming to light as it continues to unfurl on a public stage. The crux of the scandal is thus; Baylor is being accused of failing to properly respond to reported rapes and sexual assaults during the years of 2009-2016, at least eight football players have been accused or convicted of an incident during that span, and a string of students have come forward to raise accusations against Baylor staff for not attending to victims in the right manner. One, Jasmin Hernandez, has since sued the school due to officials ignoring “her attempts to report and seek justice after being raped by then-football player Tevin Elliot in 2012.” Elliot was convicted and is now serving time in jail.
Amidst the aftermath of the allegations and the impending reveal of a law firm’s review of the school’s practices, new reports say that the President and Chancellor of the school, Kenneth Starr, has allegedly been ousted from his post. Although football coach Art Briles and Athletic Director Ian McCaw have also received intense criticism from the public for Baylor’s actions, reports from The Washington Post say that the board deemed Starr the one most responsible for the mess in which the school currently finds itself. Mostly, but not exclusively, because he is said to have focused more on protecting the football program than prioritizing victim safety and treatment. Sam Ukwauchu, a defensive lineman transfer who never actually played a game for the school, was also convicted of assault last year shortly before Baylor hired the law firm to look into their internal processes.
Initially, the school flat out declined to comment on the rumors that Starr is out of a job and serving as the first fall guy for the scandal. After a few hours of speculation swirled, Baylor spokesperson Tanya Lewis released a statement in regards to the possibility that a firing had already occurred. As FOX Sports reports,
“The Baylor Board of Regents continues its work to review the findings of the Pepper Hamilton investigation and we anticipate further communication will come after the Board completes its deliberations. We will not respond to rumors, speculation or reports based on unnamed sources, but when official news is available, the University will provide it. We expect an announcement by June 3.”
Starr is most well known for his part in Bill Clinton’s impeachment and the surrounding Monica Lewinsky scandal, which he recently reversed his opinion about. The Baylor website describes Starr as “a distinguished academician, lawyer, public servant and sixth-generation Texan.”