Florida responds to booster running sexual assault hearing

Jan 1, 2016; Orlando, FL, USA; Florida Gators wide receiver Antonio Callaway (81) catches a punt against Michigan Wolverines in the 2016 Citrus Bowl at Orlando Citrus Bowl Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Reinhold Matay-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 1, 2016; Orlando, FL, USA; Florida Gators wide receiver Antonio Callaway (81) catches a punt against Michigan Wolverines in the 2016 Citrus Bowl at Orlando Citrus Bowl Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Reinhold Matay-USA TODAY Sports /
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The University of Florida has responded to a Title IX investigation that saw an accuser boycott the investigation after a Florida football booster was appointed to adjudicate the case.

On Friday morning it was revealed Florida football players Treon Harris and Antonio Callaway were accused of sexual assault in December. Harris has since transferred as part of a plea deal for the ongoing Title IX investigation in which he also apologized to his accuser. Callaway was recently reinstated to the football team as they began fall camp earlier this week.

The Title IX investigation is being boycotted by the accuser over the decision to appoint a football booster, Jake Schickel, will adjudicate the case, which her lawyer is a “fundamentally skewed process” and presents a number of conflicts for the donor to the football and men’s basketball team.

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Florida responded to accuser’s attorney and the conflict of interest he has been put in with the statement below, via Sports Illustrated.

"The University of Florida is prohibited to comment on the existence or substance of student disciplinary matters under state and federal law. However, I can tell you that our student conduct process may be handled by a hearing officer, who could be a university employee or an outside professional, or by a committee of faculty and students. Any hearing officer and all committee members are trained and vetted for their impartiality. A hearing officer or committee member would not be disqualified or lack objectivity simply because he or she had been a student athlete decades earlier or purchases athletic tickets as more than 90,000 people do each year."

The attorney for Callaway also released a statement.

"Since the complainant’s attorney has chosen to go to the press in this matter, we assume that he will be releasing the hundreds of pages that made up the University of Florida’s investigation. We assume that he will be releasing sworn affidavits in this case. We assume that he will be releasing the complainant’s text messages in the investigation. We assume that he will be releasing the complainant’s multitude of varying and conflicting stories.“We are not going to besmirch his client in the press. The totality of the investigation which is over one-thousand pages will do that for us.Our client has asked us not to release anything at this point. Because of the conduct of the complainant’s attorney, that may change in the future.”"

Stay tuned as more information regarding this case comes out.