Five women file lawsuit against Roberts Wesleyan over sexual misconduct allegations

CHILI, N.Y. A total of five women have now formally filed a federal lawsuit against Roberts Wesleyan University.

Each of the women claimed they were sexually assaulted or harassed while attending the Christian school in Chili. On Friday, News10NBC talked to their attorney and obtained a copy of the federal court papers filed earlier this week. Besides the university, a retired dean of students and a former male student were also named in the lawsuit.

“One in four women are sexually assaulted on college campuses,” said attorney J. Morgan Levy. “More than the population of women who aren’t in college at the same age group.”

Levy is representing five women who attended Roberts Wesleyan University and claimed that they were sexually assaulted or harassed by male students.

“Three of the plaintiffs all were assaulted by the same former student,” said Levy. “He’s also named in the lawsuits, and one of the plaintiffs was verbally harassed and then stalked by another Roberts student.”

She says the university that praises its Christian values failed in protecting these students.

“They believed that they would be cared for and instead they were really dismissed, ostracized,” said Levy.

Roberts Wesleyan University sent us a written statement simply saying, “Roberts Wesleyan University has not officially received notice that a case has been filed.”

Levy says that’s not the case.

“The university several weeks ago was provided a copy of the complaint with a request that they participate in mediation prior to these young women needing to mediate it in federal court,” said Levy.

She says the next step in the case includes the discovery process to get an automatic referral to mediation.

“My hope is that Roberts will take a really long hard look at its policies, its practices, that its climate and culture make some significant changes so that no other woman experience what these women did,” said Levy.

Levy says she’s hearing from former students that attended the university back in the 1970s. The more recent cases occurred over the last few years.