CT Speaker of the House Calls For Hearings On How UConn Handles Sexual Assaults

Earlier today, Connecticut Speaker of the House Brendan Sharkey, (D-Hamden), sent out a press release saying that legislative hearings on how the University of Connecticut handles campus sexual assaults are warranted, in light of recent allegations by victims.

“Keeping our children safe is a fundamental priority of a university,” Sharkey said in the release. “Any indication that this is not taking place at our flagship university is unacceptable – we must have a zero-tolerance policy for sexual violence on campus. The recent, unsettling allegations that UConn failed in that responsibility warrant an investigation and public hearings by the legislature.”

Earlier this week, seven women filed a complaint against UConn, claiming the school failed to protect them after reports of rape and sexual assault, according to NBC news. UConn President Susan Herbst disputed that complaint, saying the women's claims are “astonishingly misguided and demonstrably untrue," according to NBC.

Sharkey's move was a bipartisan one. Earlier today, Republican legislative leaders sent out a press release calling for hearings as well.

“There is no reason why this effort needed to be partisan – I’m happy to work with my Republican colleagues,” Sharkey said in his release. “Sexual assault on campus is too important an issue for political grandstanding.”