UTAH
Gillette News Record
By BRADY McCOMBS and LINDSAY WHITEHURST Associated Press
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Students at Brigham Young University who report sexual assault will no longer be investigated for possible violations of the strict honor code that bans drinking and premarital sex, the Mormon-owned school announced Wednesday in a major reversal to a practice that drew widespread scrutiny.
The college accepted several recommendations made by a faculty council that reviewed how sexual assault cases are handled. The inquiry began in May after female students and alumni spoke out against the school opening honor-code investigations of students who report abuses.
Victims advocates said the practice discourages reporting of sexual violence, which is already underreported on campuses nationwide. The sweeping changes mark a victory for victims and advocates who have been seeking reform for years and serve as a university acknowledgement that its practices were deficient.
Two former students who went public with their experiences said they are mostly pleased with the upcoming changes at the school, where students must agree to a code forbidding sex before marriage and drug and alcohol use.
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