Possibly.
The Title IX law considers most university staff and faculty to be “mandatory reporters.” If they witness sexual harassment, discrimination or abuse, or if a student tells them about such behavior, the mandatory reporter MUST report the incident to the university’s Title IX coordinator.
My understanding is that the university is then required to notify the accused and accuser, investigate the claim, offer support to the accuser, notify both the accused and the accuser of the results of the investigation, and address any wrong doing by the accused.
If the investigation indicates that the accused violated a university policy, the university will act independently of the accuser, sometimes even submitting a criminal complaint. Usually, though, the victim is the one who must file a criminal complaint with law enforcement, if they decide to do so.
One source:
Title IX at Rice University
Perhaps the university could have prevented the murders by addressing BK’s behavior before the fateful day. Firing him wouldn’t be the only option. Perhaps the university could have convinced a victim to report dangerous or illegal behavior to law enforcement and BK could have been arrested and jailed.
If BK had violated no criminal laws, perhaps the criminal justice department could have required more training. Perhaps BK could have been compelled to receive counseling or psychiatric care. Instead, his mental health wasn’t addressed until Anne Taylor did so during the build up to his trial.
BK needed mental health support way back when he was on Tapatalk, and autistic individuals (I’m one of them) often need explicit instruction about social rules/expectations that others seem to know intuitively.
IMOO
