Ohio University will mediate with the Ohio Attorney General’s Office on Friday to potentially resolve a pending lawsuit.
Former OU student Gregory Richards is asking for immediate re-enrollment to OU following an allegedly inappropriate arrest after he participated in his graduation ceremony last year.
On Sept. 19, OU responded with a memorandum that outlined why Richards’ requests could not be met, including misuses of legal terminology.
Ohio Attorney General’s Office represents state agencies, board commissions and public universities, said Dan Tierney, spokesperson for the Attorney General’s Office.
“We have good working relationships with all our clients,” Tierney said, though denied to comment further.
Richards was arrested off-campus for criminal trespassing after participating in the ceremony during which he would have graduated had he not been suspended for a February incident in which he was arrested for disorderly conduct.
At the time of the ceremony, Richards had served a week of his suspension and paid the Athens Municipal Court a $400 fine for the February incident.
When students are under prosecution, the Athens Municipal Court reviews the students’ cases independently of the university, said Ryan Lombardi, interim vice president for student affairs.
“The outcome of the court case has no bearing on the university’s process, and the university’s decision has no bearing on that case,” Lombardi said.
Once the case is received by OU, it is processed through OU’s Office of Community Standards and Living, which reviews the case and sanctions the students if necessary.
Neither President Roderick McDavis nor the university will comment on the pending litigation, said Jennifer Kirksey, chief of staff to McDavis.
Richards and his attorney, Derek Farmer, could not be reached for comment.
sj950610@ohiou.edu
