The University of Virginia is again at the center of a national debate about sexual assault - this time involving a woman who was so drunk she doesn’t remember what happened.
19-year-old Haley Lind told her story to the Washington Post, because she said she was tired of hiding and wanted her version of events to be told truthfully. A student athlete from Southern California, she believes she was sexually assaulted during the annual block party held to welcome students back to Charlottesville. The celebration is not sanctioned by the university, and no wonder. Drinking is rampant.
As she prepared to go, Lind downed two shots of tequila, two shots of vodka and a Smirnoff Ice. Another athlete - a guy she didn’t know - says he drank five beers, and shortly after the two met, both had some alcoholic punch administered from a four-gallon backpack normally used to spray pesticides on gardens.
The man, who asked the Post to withhold his name, says Lind invited him back to her apartment - a request overheard by another student. Instead, the two ended up in the bathroom of a nearby house, having sex. Later, Lind was found in a bathtub, wearing only her shoes. She had no memory of what happened, but the following morning she feared she had been raped.
The young man she accused of assault, a freshman, insisted the encounter was consensual. She argued consent was impossible given her level of intoxication. When the university learned of the matter, it ordered an investigation and contacted police.
After months, UVA issued a 96-page report, concluding the young man should not be charged, since Lind was capable of conversation, could walk upstairs and unwrap a condom. Police suspended their investigation, and the local prosecutor warned that allegations of assault are difficult to pursue when alcohol is involved.
Both students told the Washington Post just how devastating the experience had been - casting a dark shadow over their academic year and likely leaving scars for life.
