Paula Lavigne - Violated: Exposing Rape at Baylor University amid College Footballs Sexual Assault Crisis

T he allegations against Baylor University by former female studentswho say their reports of sexual assault or domestic violence were ignoreddate back more than a decade. As far back as the problems went into the past, by spring 2017 it was clear that they would also extend into the foreseeable future. In late May 2017, Baylor was under investigation, review, or monitoring by the Texas Rangers, McLennan County District Attorneys Office, Big 12 Conference, National Collegiate Athletic Association, U.S. Department of Education, and Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges, and was defending six federal Title IX lawsuits. There were five pending criminal cases against former football players and one against a fraternity president.

Because of the pending litigation, investigations, and certain legal agreements, several individuals key to Baylors sexual assault scandal refused to agree to an interview or answer questions. Others would only talk to us as long as we did not use their names. We used pseudonyms for any woman who alleged being the victim of sexual assault, physical assault, or domestic violence unless she specifically consented to the use of her name or went public with her story and her name. That would include Jasmin Hernandez and Dolores Lozano. We also used pseudonyms or granted anonymity for certain other individuals whose identity could possibly reveal the identity of an alleged victim or who requested it specifically as a condition of being interviewed. We did not name student-athletes or students accused of crimes unless their names appeared in police or school investigatory records.

On numerous occasions over several months, we requested interviews with former Baylor president Kenneth Starr, former athletic director Ian McCaw, and former head football coach Art Briles. Starr, McCaw, and Briles were also sent a list of questions addressing specific issues and allegations raised in this book. Starr and McCaw did not respond to the interview requests or the list of questions. Briles did not respond to requests for an interview; his attorney Mark Lanier said Briles, who had reached a financial settlement with the university, could not answer any of the submitted questions unless we secured written permission from Baylor officials for Briles to do so, but the university denied that request. We spoke on the record with three current Baylor regents: Kim Stevens, J. Cary Gray, and David Harper and exchanged written questions with then-chairman Ron Murff. We spoke to dozens of other sources both on and off the record throughout the book, including former assistant football coaches and former university employees. We also requested an interview with former Baylor football player Sam Ukwuachu, but he never responded, outside of sending us emails hed sent to other media. We submitted a request with the Texas Department of Criminal Justice to interview Tevin Elliott, who is currently incarcerated in a Texas prison, but he declined to meet with us.

Our research is backed up by copious documentation, which we obtained through public records requests, websites, and other sources. We reviewed trial transcripts for the Elliott and Ukwuachu criminal trials, read dozens of police reports from Waco and Baylor police, analyzed criminal incident databases, and pored through legal filings in more than ten federal and state lawsuits. With all the pending litigation and investigations, more details will likely surface, but we have captured, to date, the most comprehensive narrative of what unfolded in Waco, Texas, and later became a nationwide cautionary tale.