Michigan State University stopped short of issuing the harshest possible sanctions against former head football coach Mel Tucker after disciplining him for sexual misconduct.
On Friday, Michigan State permanently banned Tucker from any future employment or affiliation with the college – which would have been highly unlikely anyway, given that it fired him for cause in late September.
The sanctions, effective immediately, constitute his formal punishment after a campus investigation found him responsible for sexually harassing and exploiting Brenda Tracy, a rape survivor and prominent activist against sexual violence whom he had hired to speak to his team.
Investigation Michigan State football coach Mel Tucker accused of sexually harassing rape survivor
School officials declined, however, to forbid Tucker from setting foot on campus or from attending Spartans sporting events – other options available to them under school policy.
Auburn University imposed such a ban against its former associate softball coach, Corey Myers, in December 2017 after a Title IX investigation determined Myers pursued multiple inappropriate romantic relationships with students he supervised. Auburn banned him from future employment, campus and Tigers softball events on or off campus. Myers had resigned from Auburn nine months earlier.
The University of Louisville also banned its former dance coachTodd Sharp, from campus in 2018 after he accidentally shot himself in the leg with a gun during a banquet for the school’s baseball team.
But enforcing such a ban on Tucker could get dicey, said David Ring, a California-based attorney who represents sexual abuse survivors – particularly if another school hires him and his new team plays a game against the Spartans. In that case, Michigan State would have to be willing and ready to arrest him.
“I could see why they maybe didn’t want to go that far and they just kept it kind of broad,” Ring said. “‘You’re never going to work here again, and you can’t go out there saying you’re somehow affiliated with us.’ That seems reasonable.”
Tracy declined to comment for this story. Tucker and his attorney, Jennifer Belveal, did not return messages seeking comment. Michigan State spokesperson Emily Guerrant did not elaborate on why more severe sanctions were not imposed.
“As a result of the finding of fault in the university’s relationship violence and sexual misconduct investigation involving Mr. Tucker, the university has decided to restrict future employment at Michigan State University (paid or unpaid) and also prevent any future affiliation with the university,” Guerrant said in an email to USA TODAY.
In a complaint to the university’s Title IX office, Tracy said Tucker masturbated without her consent during a phone call in April 2022 – the culmination of what she described as months of unwanted sexual advances. Tucker told the school’s outside investigator he and Tracy had developed a romantic relationship and engaged in consensual phone sex.
Michigan State suspended Tucker without pay on Sept. 10, hours after Tracy went public with her allegations in a USA TODAY investigation. A week later, athletic director Alan Haller moved to fire Tucker for cause, canceling the remaining $80 million on his 10-year contract. Even Tucker’s acknowledged conduct, Haller wrote in his termination letter, amounted to a fireable offense.
“It is decidedly unprofessional and unethical to flirt, make sexual comments, and masturbate while on the phone with a University vendor,” the letter said. “The unprofessional and unethical behavior is particularly egregious given that the Vendor at issue was contracted by the University for the sole purpose of educating student-athletes on, and preventing instances of, inappropriate sexual misconduct.”
After an eight-month fact-finding investigation and formal hearing, the school’s outside resolution officer, Amanda Norris Ames, concluded on Oct. 25 that Tucker’s account was less plausible, less consistent and less supported by the evidence than Tracy’s.
By a preponderance of the evidence, Ames determined Tucker violated the school’s sexual misconduct policy for his conduct during the now-infamous phone call and in the months leading up to it. The officer also determined Tucker engaged in quid pro quo sexual harassment after the call, when he ended Tracy’s business relationship with the university as a consequence for rejecting his advances.
Tucker appealed the decision, saying the school subjected him to an unfair process and improperly investigated his personal life. An outside appeal officer hired by the school denied his appeal on Jan. 11, ruling that the investigation and Ames’ conclusions were fair and reasonable.
Tucker has indicated he will sue Michigan State for wrongful termination but has not yet filed suit.
Tucker has repeatedly described himself as the true victim in the case. He said the university conducted a “sham” investigation designed to terminate his record contract. He questioned the motives of Michigan State’s Board of Trustees and athletic department leadership. He accused the school’s outside investigator of bias against him and men more broadly. He also claimed Tracy invented the allegations in a plot for money. He outed her consensual relationship with another man and published a trove of private messages between her and her friend, who had died months earlier in a car crash, to paint her in a negative light.
Any school that takes a second chance on Tucker would assume a huge amount of legal exposure, Ring said, because it could well find itself on the hook for financial damages if someone else accuses Tucker of sexual harassment. Tucker’s scorch-the-earth approach to defending himself, Ring said, should also make any school wary.
“This guy has accused every official at MSU of misconduct or playing unfair. He’s gone hyper-aggressive on the litigation, and the facts really aren’t in dispute. He’s admitted to conduct that’s inappropriate for sure and illegal if you go off the Title IX findings,” Ring said. “Who’s going to bring that guy on board?”
Kenny Jacoby is an investigative reporter for USA TODAY covering sexual harassment and violence and Title IX. Contact him by email at [email protected] and follow him on X @kennyjacoby.
2024-01-24 12:13:26
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