University of Oregon officials are being investigated for potentially mishandling a gang rape case in which they dug into
the victim's confidential therapy records to defend against a lawsuit they anticipated she would file. Richard Read
has the details:
Six University of Oregon employees, including a vice president and the school's interim top lawyer, are under investigation for alleged misconduct in the handling of therapy records of a student who says she was gang-raped by three Ducks basketball players.
The Oregon State Bar is investigating complaints against interim general counsel Douglas Park and associate general counsel Samantha Hill. The Oregon Board of Psychologist Examiners is investigating complaints against four people, including Robin Holmes, the university's vice president for student life, who is a licensed psychologist.
The complaints were filed by Jennifer Morlok, a senior staff therapist at the university who provided counseling to the student. The lawyers could potentially be permanently disbarred if found guilty of misconduct and the psychologists could lose their licenses. Lesser penalties could also be applied or the charges dismissed altogether depending upon the outcome of the investigation.
Here's the chronology of events:
On Dec. 10, 2014, University Counseling & Testing Center director Shelly Kerr released Jane Doe's entire confidential file, including Morlok's therapy notes, to the General Counsel's Office without the student's permission. A month later, the student sued the university and basketball coach Dana Altman in U.S. District Court in Eugene on multiple grounds including the records release.
The university and Altman countersued the student, but dropped the claim after public outcry that generated renewed attention to the University of Oregon as national outrage grew concerning campus sexual assaults.
Kudos to Morlok, whose job was threatened
for crying foul on the university's handling of this case. Whistleblowers always experience backlash, but this situation warranted scrutiny. Regardless of the outcome of the investigation, no one's confidential therapy records should be released without their permission.
"It's the worst thing I could think of," Morlok said. "The last thing we want to release is the session notes, because those are the intimate details of the process a person is going through and sharing. We kind of want to guard those with our life."
The case has also brought to light a potential loophole in the federal privacy law known as the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, or FERPA.