Catch a Falling Knife

separate hearing first for my accuser.”
    “And who is present at these hearings?”
    “A panel of about five people. One of them is Patricia Estavez, who Lillian met yesterday.”
    “I don’t mean to sound negative,” I said, “but if she is the deciding vote your goose is cooked. And I suspect she leaked the information about you to the protestors to create a negative buzz. Presumably, that will make your firing easier for your students to accept.”
    Mark grimaced in agreement.
    “If the policy states that information about the case is confidential, the leak may be grounds for an appeal,” Wesley said.
    “Except that an appeal is handled by basically the same group,” Mark said. “It’s called the adjudicating panel. In addition to Ms. Estavez, it also includes two deans and a faculty member, all specially trained in sensitivity to sexual misconduct.”
    “Which apparently means sensitivity to women but not men,” I said.
    “What kind of testimony can you give?” Wesley asked. He was a CPA and had been an accountant in the world of business, so he took a practical approach to problem solving.
    “Basically, all I can do is tell my side of the story. That’s about it. There won’t be any witnesses because there weren’t any. As I said, I can’t question my accuser. She won’t be present when I am.”
    “So it’s your word against hers,” Tess said. “I would believe you before some dippy girl.”
    “Thanks for the vote of confidence. Unfortunately, none of you can attend the meeting.”
    “How about character witnesses?” I asked, remembering the girl from the Administration Building.
    Mark shook his head. “I asked about that. I was told that I might produce a dozen witnesses and they would turn the proceeding into a farce.”
    “I’m sure you can produce a hundred character witnesses, but the proceeding is a farce anyway,” Tess said. “And since it’s done in secret, it will be impossible to appeal or correct any bias, intentional or otherwise, on the part of the panel.”
    Speaking of bias, it was obvious that we all had the same opinion. I should have invited Priscilla Estavez to give her side of the story. I felt I had a moral obligation to stand in for her. I said, “I understand that the reason for the policy is that students—meaning coeds—had previously found it difficult to file rape charges. They had to cut through a lot of red tape and the college officials tried to downplay problems.”
    “But now they’ve swung the pendulum too far in the other direction,” Wesley said, “Out the window go due process and other protections our country is grounded on. Does the charge in your case include rape?”
    “I don’t see how it could,” Mark said, “but Ms. Estavez implied that it did. I guess rape is as good as any other charge because I can’t understand how any charge could have been made. But the policy is worded so loosely that what actually happened might be used against me if my accuser had some kind of mental and/or physical impairment that I should have been aware of.”
    “Such as having a crush on you?” I asked.
    Mark shrugged. He wasn’t conscious of his attractiveness to women, which of course made him that much more attractive.
    “All right, this is what we’re going to do,” Tess said. “We’re going to write a script for Mark to use when he testifies. Lillian, do you want to take notes? No, I’d better do it because my handwriting is better than that of anyone else here and I have experience because I acted as Lillian’s secretary when she solved Gerald’s murder.”
    Tess produced a yellow pad and her glasses from her purse, which she put on, being careful not to disturb her perfectly coifed white hair. She had come prepared.
    “In many enterprises, the secretary runs the company,” Wesley said, with a smile. “I’m sorry; I should have said administrative assistant. I understand that there aren’t any secretaries any more.”
    “I may not have a lot of work experience, like the rest of you,” Tess continued, “but I was a member of my local school board and I ran into people like those who are likely to be on the panel. I had to deal with issues like school busing to achieve integration, so I understand the politics of victimhood.”
     “Who are the victims here?” Mark asked.
    “Isn’t it obvious? The women students. They are so fragile that they have to be protected from their tormentors and can’t even be in the same