Athlete’s assault conviction raises questions about StFX’s judicial process
February 25, 2010 9:00 AM
As we learned during first semester when a StFX student en route to a football game in Halifax was caught shouting homophobic epithets out the window of the fan bus, students’ inappropriate behaviour, both on campus and off, reflects poorly on our university.
One would think that when a student’s bad behaviour was not only inappropriate but also criminal, it would be considered especially heinous by officials at StFX.
Such a standard would apply to most of us, no doubt.
This past week, StFX X-Man and convicted criminal Will Donkoh suited up to play a home game just two days after Judge John Embree found him guilty of assaulting another StFX student last year.
Cue the campus-wide eye roll.
This is precisely the kind of BS that reminds us StFX can be a very silly place to go to school. At our university, apparently, an individual who ought to be an embarrassment is allowed to retain the prestige of sporting our official colours as a member of the X-Men.
(Can you feel that overpriced chunk of gold on your finger devaluing yet?)
The athletics director confirmed this week that there would be no further action taken on his part; such a decision was made on the grounds that Donkoh had already gone through the university’s judicial channels in the previous academic year, which was when the assault occurred.
So despite a conviction by a provincial court judge indicating that he and two other men attacked a fellow student - a conviction that could perhaps carry some prison time - Donkoh gets to stay, and play, and wear our logo.
Ultimately this situation begs the question: what is the role of the university in dealing with criminal students?
According to StFX’s athletics director, all of the individuals involved with the assault were ‘dealt with’ through the university’s judicial system.
If this is the case, how is it that our judicial process at StFX failed to expel Donkoh from this institution (or even boot him from the team) while a judge in the real world found him guilty of an offence for which he could be imprisoned?
It occurs to me that there are only so many scenarios that could account for this discrepancy: Donkoh was never charged with assault under the Community Code, he was charged and found not guilty, he was convicted and weakly sanctioned, or Judge Embree of the Nova Scotia Provincial Court got it completely wrong.
I might be a tad cynical, but I have a hunch it’s not the latter.
It’s worth noting that what’s at stake here isn’t only the university’s reputation, but much more importantly, the safety of StFX students and their ability to find justice for crimes committed against them while attending this institution.
