Doe v. Brown Univ.
Doe v. Brown Univ.
Opinion of the Court
This case is before the Court on motions from Defendants John Smith (ECF Nos. 40, 41), Phi Kappa Psi, Inc., ("PKP") (ECF Nos. 50, 51), and Brown University ("Brown" or "University") (ECF No. 65), variously attacking Plaintiff Jane Doe's Second Amended Complaint ("SAC") (ECF No. 39). After a brief overview of the alleged facts, the Court considers and denies all but part of Brown's Motion for Judgment on the Pleadings and part of Defendant John Smith's Motion to Dismiss.
I. Background
As alleged in the SAC, on October 17, 2014, Doe attended a party hosted by the members of Phi Kappa Psi-Rhode Island Alpha Chapter ("Alpha Chapter") at the fraternity's residence on the Brown campus. Then a junior at Brown, Doe arrived at the party with her friend, Mary Roe, who soon found herself in conversation with John Smith. Eventually Smith offered Roe a drink. Roe assented, but requested a drink that would not aggravate one of her myriad food allergies.
Smith obliged, mixing an ostensibly hypoallergenic cocktail, out of the view of Doe and Roe. Roe took a sip and handed the drink to Doe who also partook before handing the drink back to Roe to finish. Both women soon entered something of a fugue, experiencing a loss of motor function, cognitive awareness, and memory. After they became separated as a result of their disorientation, Doe stumbled into Michael Jones, a Brown student she had met once before. In the early hours of October 18, 2014, Jones led Doe to her dormitory room and had sex with her while she lay incapacitated.
The next morning Doe sought medical treatment at Brown University Health Services ("Health Services"), where she requested testing for ingestion of date-rape drugs. Dr. Marsha Miller at Health Services took blood and urine samples and sent them to the Rhode Island Hospital Toxicology Laboratory. On October 27, 2014, Dr. Miller informed Plaintiff that her samples had tested positive for gamma-Hydroxybutyric acid ("GHB").
In response to the positive test and a formal complaint filed with Brown by Doe, *257the University opened three disciplinary proceedings, one each against Alpha Chapter, Jones, and Smith. On December 10, 2014, Brown's Student Conduct Board found the fraternity "Responsible" for charges that included illegal possession or use of drugs; illegal provision, sale, or possession with intent to sell drugs; and actions that result in or can be reasonably expected to result in physical harm to a person. And on December 22, 2014, the Student Conduct Board found Jones "Not Responsible" on two sexual misconduct charges.
Brown set the disciplinary hearing regarding Smith's conduct for December 19, 2014. But on December 15 the hearing was enjoined by court order. In January, through no fault of her own, there appeared reason to doubt much of the physical evidence supporting Doe's claims: A toxicology analysis of Roe's hair came back negative for GHB. A report by Dr. David Greenblatt (who had been retained by Smith) concerning the toxicology testing of Doe's urine sample concluded that such testing produced invalid results. The University's own expert, Dr. Guy Vallaro, agreed with Dr. Greenblatt as to the invalidity of the urine sample, and also found that the testing of Doe's blood sample and of Roe's hair sample had been faulty, producing inconclusive results.
News of the invalid tests led University Provost Joseph Meisel to reduce the penalty previously handed down to Alpha Chapter, and the University dropped its disciplinary proceeding against Smith.
Doe appealed the University's decision to drop its investigation into Smith, which the University denied. Doe suspects this decision was part of an effort on Brown's part to shield Smith-the son of a University Trustee-from investigation. As grounds for this suspicion, Doe notes that the University rejected receipt of evidence that Smith was running a false-identification business, and that University officials had previously told Doe that Smith's disciplinary hearing would continue regardless of the toxicology results.
Emboldened by what they considered their successful defense of Doe's complaints against them, Alpha Chapter and Smith began intimidating Doe, with impunity. For instance, despite the University withdrawing its recognition of Alpha Chapter, the fraternity went on to recruit new members and gather at the fraternity house. The purpose of one such gathering was raising the fraternity's flag in counter-protest as a group of Brown students marched through campus against the University's handling of Doe's and Roe's cases. There was also an incident where Alpha Chapter distributed leaflets on campus that disclosed confidential information regarding Doe's allegations. For his part, Smith began staying overnight in Doe's dormitory in violation of a "No Contact" order, a situation that made Doe uncomfortable.
Not only did the University stand by as others moved against her, it also denied her an interview to Brown's medical school-even though Doe was, on paper, one of Brown's best students, and was *258ultimately offered admission by many other top medical schools. Doe believes that Brown's decision was not on the merits, but rather retaliation for Doe's vigorous assertion of her rights throughout the University's investigations.
II. Discussion
Doe brings claims against Brown for discrimination (count one) and retaliation (count two) in violation of Title IX. She also charges the University with negligence (counts three and four). Doe's claims against PKP (count five) and Alpha-Chapter representatives (counts four and five) sound in negligence. And finally, Doe sues Smith for assault and battery (count six).
Doe asks for damages to compensate her for the severe emotional harm she allegedly experienced as a result of the incident at Alpha Chapter's party and Brown's conduct during its investigation of the incident. Doe claims that her compromised emotional state disrupted her studies, extracurricular activities, and overall enjoyment of campus life. She also asks for punitive damages.
As mentioned above, and discussed below, Defendants have variously challenged the SAC. Some of these challenges succeed; most do not.
A. Brown University's Motion for Judgment on the Pleadings
Brown moves for judgment on the pleadings as to counts one, two, three, and four of Doe's SAC. "The standard of review of a motion for judgment on the pleadings under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(c) is the same as that for a motion to dismiss under Rule 12(b)(6)." Frappier v. Countrywide Home Loans, Inc.,
1. Count One: Title IX Discrimination
Count one alleges Title IX discrimination against Brown. Under Title IX, "recipients of federal funding may be liable for 'subject[ing]' their students to discrimination where the recipient is deliberately indifferent to known acts of student-on-student sexual harassment and the harasser is under the school's disciplinary authority." Davis v. Monroe Cty. Bd. of Educ.,
That is, funding recipients like Brown may be liable under Title IX "only where the recipient's response to the harassment or lack thereof is clearly unreasonable in light of the known circumstances."
The First Circuit has developed a five-part test for Title IX liability in cases of student-on-student harassment. Porto v. Town of Tewsbury,
(1) that he or she was subject to severe, pervasive, and objectively offensive sexual harassment by a school peer, ... (2)
*259that the harassment caused the plaintiff to be deprived of educational opportunities or benefits ... (3) [and that the funding recipient] knew of the harassment, (4) in its programs or activities and (5) it was deliberately indifferent to the harassment such that its response (or lack thereof) is clearly unreasonable in light of the known circumstances.
Moreover, "[i]f an educational institution takes 'timely and reasonable measures to end the harassment, it is not liable under Title IX for prior harassment.' However, if earlier measures have proved inadequate to prevent further harassment, a school 'may be required to take further steps to avoid new liability.' " Doe v. Emerson Coll.,
There is no denying that Brown responded to Doe's complaints, and that at least from a certain vantage, its response was arguably far from perfunctory. Indeed, even in Doe's telling the University's response included collecting blood and urine samples to test for the date-rape drugs GHB and flunitrazepam; issuing statements to the Brown community regarding Doe's allegations and findings Brown made during its investigation of those allegations; conducting disciplinary proceedings against Alpha Chapter and Jones; and imposing a sanction on Alpha Chapter that withdrew its university recognition for two-and-a-half years.
But the law makes plain that a response to Doe's complaints does not, by itself, shield Brown from liability under Title IX; the nature of the response matters. See Brodeur v. Claremont Sch. Dist.,
Furthermore, if a university "learns that its measures have proved inadequate, it may be required to take further steps to avoid new liability." Leader,
And in fact, here Doe alleges that Brown's investigation was bungled, and in a way that led to further harassment. For example, Doe alleges that Brown routinely sent blood and urine samples to a laboratory incapable of conducting definitive tests for date-rape drugs-despite Brown's *260knowledge that other female students reported being drugged at campus events. Moreover, Doe alleges that by sending samples to an ill-equipped laboratory, Brown in effect lost evidence that may have supported her complaint against Smith.
Without this evidence, according to Doe, Brown had an easier time convincing the campus community and general public that its reason for discontinuing its disciplinary process concerning Smith was a lack of evidence, and not in furtherance of a secret design to drop the case as a favor to Smith's father, a University trustee-a decision that was at least curious given that Brown officials had found in the proceedings against Alpha Chapter that Smith had spiked Doe's drink.
The Court finds that these allegations-again, taken as true, and in the light most favorable to Doe-make out a plausible claim that Brown's response was "carried out so inartfully as to render it clearly unreasonable." Brodeur,
2. Count Two: Title IX Retaliation
Count two of the SAC alleges a Title IX retaliation claim against Brown. A plaintiff may establish a prima facie case for a retaliation claim by alleging facts sufficient to show that "she engaged in activity protected by Title IX, that the alleged retaliator knew of the protected activity, that the alleged retaliator subsequently undertook some action disadvantageous to the actor, and that a retaliatory motive played a substantial part in prompting the adverse action." Frazier v. Fairhaven Sch. Comm.,
In her SAC, Doe contends that after she complained to Brown about the alleged drugging and sexual assault, the University denied her a medical school interview in retaliation for her complaints. Doe has therefore alleged that she engaged in activity protected by Title IX that the retaliator knew about. See Minnis v. Bd. of Supervisors of La. State Univ. & Agric. & Mech. Coll.,
The Court finds that Doe has made out a prima facie Title IX retaliation claim. See Fox v. Town of Framingham, Civil No. 14-CV-10337-LTS,
3. Count Three: Negligence
In count three, Doe alleges that Brown was negligent in its handling of the physical evidence related to her case, resulting *261in "significant emotional harm." In its motion for judgment on this count, Brown assumes, arguendo, that it has a duty to adequately collect, maintain, and test samples provided in cases of suspected drugging and sexual assault. But the University argues, correctly, that because Doe does not allege she suffered any physical harm as a result of Brown's alleged mistreatment of the physical evidence in her case, her claim is one for negligent infliction of emotional distress. See Frisina v. Women and Infants Hosp. of R.I., No. CIV. A. 95-4037,
And under Rhode Island law, this type of claim is limited to two groups, neither of which includes Doe. See Perrotti v. Gonicberg,
Doe also alleges in count three that Brown was negligent in its supervision of Alpha Chapter. This claim fails, Brown argues, because the university-student relationship is not the type of "special relationship" that may qualify for an exception to the general rule that "a landowner has no duty to protect another from harm caused by the dangerous or illegal acts of a third party." Martin v. Marciano,
Under Rhode Island law, "[a] special relationship, when derived from common law, is predicated on a plaintiff's reasonable expectations and reliance that a defendant will anticipate harmful acts of third persons and take appropriate measures to protect the plaintiff from harm." Martin,
The Ferreira court found no duty in part because holding social hosts liable for their guests' torts would have "such serious implications that any action taken should be taken by the Legislature after careful investigation, scrutiny, and debate." Ferreira,
4. Count Four: Premises Liability
Count four alleges premises liability against Brown based on the University's ownership of Sears House, which served as campus residence for Alpha *262Chapter, and where Doe was allegedly drugged. The law of premises liability "imposes an affirmative duty upon owners and possessors of property: to exercise reasonable care for the safety of persons reasonably expected to be on the premises includ[ing] an obligation to protect against the risks of a dangerous condition existing on the premises, provided the landowner knows of, or by the exercise of reasonable care would have discovered, the dangerous condition." Correia v. Bettencourt,
The Court finds that the same sweeping social implications that have made the judiciary hesitate to hold universities liable under the special-relationship theory (discussed above) counsel similar caution as to Doe's premises-liability theory. See Bucki v. Hawkins,
Moreover, the dangerous condition that allegedly hurt Doe-a spiked drink at the fraternity-is not something Doe plausibly alleges that Brown knew of or should have reasonably discovered. See
B. PKP's Motion to Dismiss
PKP moves to dismiss count five of the SAC, which claims PKP negligently failed to take reasonable steps to control the dangerous behavior of Alpha-Chapter members. PKP argues that count five should be dismissed because PKP owed Doe no duty of care. Doe responds that her complaint contains enough factual matter to make the existence of a duty of care plausible, and therefore PKP's motion should be denied. The Court sides with Doe.
In order to survive PKP's motion, Doe's complaint "must contain sufficient factual matter to state a claim to relief that is plausible on its face." Rodríguez-Reyes v. Molina-Rodríguez,
PKP "provided for the existence and recognition of [Alpha Chapter]" which was "a prerequisite for Alpha Chapter's eligibility to administer Program Housing at Sears House on the campus of Brown University."
PKP "authorized and supervised the operation of [Alpha Chapter]."
*263PKP "exercise[d] control over [Alpha Chapter] ... and [its] individual members."
PKP "had ... the authority to discipline [Alpha Chapter] and to revoke its charter."
Study data show that "sexual assault is endemic on college campuses"; "that the most significant risk factor for campus sexual assault is the use of alcohol"; that "[f]raternities pose ... [a] well-known risk factor for campus sexual assault of women with fraternity members being statistically more likely than non-members to commit assaults against female students"; and that "[f]raternity members are twice as likely to use incapacitation by alcohol or other substances to facilitate sexual assault of women rather than direct physical force."
Alpha Chapter "had a reputation on campus ... of being a source for the purchase of illegal drugs, including ... hallucinogenic substances."
"Between 2011 and the unregistered party on October 17, 2014, [Alpha Chapter] was charged in five disciplinary cases, involving unregistered parties, serving alcohol to minors, misconduct by members, and property damage." PKP "was aware of the disciplinary measures taken by Brown University against [Alpha Chapter]."
In response to known risks surrounding fraternities, alcohol, and sexual assault, PKP "issue[d] risk management policies to all local chapters concerning the use of alcohol and drugs, and the prevention of sexual assault."
Under Rhode Island law, "[t]o prevail on a claim of negligence, a plaintiff must establish a legally cognizable duty owed by a defendant to a plaintiff, a breach of that duty, proximate causation between the conduct and the resulting injury, and the actual loss or damage." Ouch v. Khea,
Although the question whether a duty exists is one of law, "there is no clear-cut formula to determine whether a duty exists in a specific case." Id."Instead, the court will employ an ad hoc approach that turns on the particular facts and circumstances of a given case, taking into consideration all relevant factors, including the relationship between the parties, the scope and burden of the obligation to be imposed upon the defendant, public policy considerations, and the foreseeability of harm to the plaintiff."
Rhode Island courts emphasize the foreseeability prong of this inquiry. See Selwyn v. Ward,
As Justice Cardozo of the New York Court of Appeals said: "The risk reasonably to be perceived defines the duty to be obeyed, and risk imports relation; it is risk to another or to others within the range of apprehension." Palsgraf v. Long Island R.R. Co.,248 N.Y. 339 ,162 N.E. 99 , 100 (1928). This Court has expressed this concept of limiting the scope of a defendant's duty according to risks he or she reasonably perceived, saying that a duty must be based on conduct sufficiently likely to result in the kind of harm suffered by the plaintiff ....
PKP points to two Indiana Supreme Court cases wherein the court found there was no duty of care running from a national fraternity to third parties harmed by fraternity members. See gener ally *264Smith v. Delta Tau Delta, Inc.,
Moreover, even though the Indiana Supreme Court has on two occasions found that there was no duty of care owed by national fraternity organizations, Rhode Island courts have yet to decide the issue, and other courts have disagreed with those in Indiana. See, e.g., Brown v. Delta Tau Delta,
C. Smith's Motion to Dismiss
Defendant Smith moves to dismiss Doe's assault and battery claims. Smith argues that there can be no assault where, as here, the plaintiff had no apprehension of an injury before that injury occurred. He argues that Doe's battery claim must be dismissed because (1) there is no medical evidence that an offensive touching occurred; (2) there is no evidence from which intent to injure can be inferred; and (3) Doe has not pleaded fraud with particularity.
The Court dismisses Doe's assault claim. In Rhode Island, "[a]n assault is a physical act of a threatening nature or an offer of corporal injury which puts an individual in reasonable fear of imminent bodily harm. It is a plaintiff's apprehension of injury ... which renders a defendant's act compensable." Hennessey v. Pyne,
*265Doe argues that she was put in reasonable fear of imminent bodily harm after she had sipped the allegedly adulterated beverage. But by then the battery, if one there was, had already been committed-the golf ball had already struck her. There is no allegation that Doe was in fear of harmful or offensive bodily contact before such contact occurred. See Restatement (Second) of Torts § 21 (Am. Law Inst. 1965) ("An actor is subject to liability for another for assault if (a) he acts intending to cause a harmful or offensive contact with the person of the other or a third person, or an imminent apprehension of such a contact, and (b) the other is thereby put in such imminent apprehension."); see also Geiger v. Bowersox,
Doe's battery claim, on the other hand, survives. Rhode Island law defines battery as "an act that was intended to cause, and in fact did cause, an offensive contact with or unconsented touching of or trauma upon the body of another." Hennessey,
Doe alleges that Smith intentionally mixed then served a drink that caused her harmful mental and physical effects. Cf. Snouffer v. Snouffer, No. 92 CA 499,
Moreover, Smith's argument that there can be no battery where there is no allegation Smith specifically intended the drink for Doe is unavailing. Under Rhode Island law, it is "not necessary that defendant intend to injure plaintiff. To constitute a battery, it is enough to set in motion willfully a force that in its ordinary course causes an injury." Proffitt v. Ricci,
Finally, Smith's attempt to convert Doe's battery claim into one for fraud that is subject to the heightened pleading standards required by Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 9 is without merit. See Connectu LLC v. Zuckerberg,
*266D. PKP's and Smith's Motions to Strike
PKP and Smith move to strike certain parts of the SAC. A party may move pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(f) to strike "from a pleading ... any redundant, immaterial, impertinent, or scandalous matter." Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(f). " Rule 12(f) is designed to reinforce the requirement in Rule 8(e) that pleadings be simple, concise, and direct." Fundi v. Citizens Bank of R.I., No. CA 07-
But "while ruling on a motion to strike is committed to the district court's sound judgment, such motions are narrow in scope, disfavored in practice, and not calculated readily to invoke the court's discretion. This is so because striking a portion of a pleading is a drastic remedy and ... it is often sought by the movant simply as a dilatory or harassing tactic." Manning v. Bos. Med. Ctr. Corp.,
1. PKP's Motion
PKP wants stricken three paragraphs in Doe's complaint that refer to studies that estimate the prevalence of sexual assault on college campuses, and that describe how alcohol and fraternities have contributed to these assaults. PKP argues that such information is not relevant to Doe's claims, and in the alternative, that to the extent such information is relevant, it is nevertheless unduly prejudicial.
PKP's arguments fail because, as Doe points out, data on the prevalence of campus sexual assault are relevant to, among other things, establishing the duty of care for her negligence claim against PKP. See Ouch,
Moreover, PKP's arguments that these data may not be admissible are insufficient to support a Rule 12(f) motion to strike. See Sheffield v. City of Boston,
2. Smith's Motion
Smith moves to strike several paragraphs from Doe's brief that allege Smith operated a fake-identification business out of his residence at Brown. Smith argues that these allegations are immaterial and impertinent to the issues in the case, and that they are unduly prejudicial.
Doe responds that these allegations support her claims insofar as they identify how Smith purchased alcohol for the party, which was the medium through which Smith committed the alleged battery. Doe also claims that the University declined to accept evidence of Smith's business, which, she argues, is evidence for her contention *267that the University unfairly protected Smith during its investigation of the incident.
The Court recognizes that allegations of running a fake-identification business do not cast Smith in the best light, and are not at the heart of Doe's case. However, Doe has sufficiently demonstrated how these allegations could be relevant to her case. And in any event Smith has not made it "clear that the allegations in question can have no possible bearing on the subject matter of the litigation." Lennon v. Seaman,
III. Conclusion
As set out above, the Court grants in part and denies in part Brown University's Motion for Judgment on the Pleadings (ECF No. 65); denies Phi Kappa Psi, Inc.'s, Motion to Dismiss (ECF No. 50); grants in part and denies in part John Smith's Motion to Dismiss (ECF No. 41); and denies both PKP's (ECF No. 51) and Smith's (ECF No. 40) motions to strike.
IT IS SO ORDERED.
As it must, this section presents Doe's rendering of the facts. See Arruda v. Sears, Roebuck & Co.,
Brown also issued notice to the campus community that it would no longer use the laboratories to which it sent Doe's samples.
The Court notes that there is some similarity between the premises-liability claim against Brown and the negligence claim against PKP. However, dismissing the former while allowing the latter to proceed is the result of Brown's being further removed from Doe's alleged injury. See Bucki,
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Jane DOE v. BROWN UNIVERSITY Phi Kappa Psi, Inc. John Smith Phi Kappa Psi-Rhode Island Alpha Chapter President R.H. Phi Kappa Psi-Rhode Island Alpha Chapter Secretary 1 Phi Kappa Psi-Rhode Island Alpha Chapter President J.P. and Phi Kappa Psi-Rhode Island Alpha Chapter Secretary 2
- Cited By
- 3 cases
- Status
- Published