WACO (WBAP/KLIF News) – A federal judge has ordered Baylor to hand over information from an independent investigation into how the university responded to accusations of sexual assault.
Baylor hired the law firm Pepper Hamilton in 2015 to investigate the way the school handled accusations of sexual assault by members of the football team and other students.
The firm found that Baylor repeatedly mishandled the accusations.
Now, the judge is forcing Baylor to turn over documents and witness lists to attorney and state Representative Jum Dunnam, who is representing several women who say they were raped while at the University.
Baylor fired its football coach Art Briles and reassigned President Ken Starr as a result of the investigation. Regents also revealed that 19 football players had been involved in a sexually violent act since 2011.
The documents would not be made public but might come up if the case goes to trial.
Baylor released a statement regarding the order on Friday that read in part.
“Baylor recognizes that this is a complex order, and the university appreciates the court’s ruling that attorney work product privileges continue to apply in this case. All of the work product and related materials prepared by Pepper Hamilton are currently protected from discovery, with the provision of the university being required to produce a detailed log of certain work product and to identify witnesses who were interviewed. Baylor continues to express concerns regarding the protection of students’ personal records, specifically the desire of many students — who are unrelated to this case — that their identities remain anonymous and their information confidential.”
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