3 NEWS Thursday, May 16, 2019 The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com U.S. District Judge Arthur Tarnow has ordered University of Michigan President Mark Schlissel to appear in court June 11 as a result of the Doe v. Univer- sity of Michigan lawsuit. On Wednesday afternoon, Tar- now turned down a motion from University lawyers which would have over- turned the order requiring Schlissel’s appearance. Tarnow originally ordered Schlissel to court by May 1 during a tele- conference with Joshua Richards, a Pennsylvania- based attorney represent- ing the University, and the unnamed plaintiff’s attorney Deborah Gordon, a Bloomfield Hills civil rights attorney. During the teleconference, Gordon echoed Tarnow’s senti- ments regarding Schlissel’s attendance in court, while Richards made repeated arguments against the order. The order came out of a case involving a male undergraduate student who sued the University in June 2018. The student, referred to as “John Doe,” was on track to graduate and had been accepted to the Uni- versity’s graduate engineer- ing program, in addition to programs at other colleges. The student felt his future was endangered when the University froze his tran- script and degree follow- ing a complaint of sexual assault against him. Doe’s transcript was released in June, within a week of the lawsuit being filed. The allegations trace back to November 2017, when a female student reached out to Doe, a Uni- versity residential adviser, about getting together. Doe invited her to his room, at which point they watched a movie and had sexual rela- tions. Four months later, in March 2018, the female stu- dent accused Doe of sexual- ly assaulting her during the interaction in a complaint filed with the University’s Office of Institutional Equity. The female student said Doe had nonconsensual sex with her in his resi- dence hall room. However, Doe said in the lawsuit the encounter was consensual and no drugs or alcohol were involved, the Detroit News reported. There were no witnesses to the encoun- ter in question. The lawsuit aligns with a 2017 ruling regarding the University of Cincinnati, in which a similar case found- ed exclusively upon “he said/she said” grounds and in which defendant failed to “provide any form of confrontation of the accus- er” made the proceeding “fundamentally unfair” to the case’s defendant. Doe said in the lawsuit he was unaware of the allega- tions during his interview with the OIE, rendering him unable to respond ade- quately. Additionally, the lawsuit claimed the Univer- sity refused the option for a hearing or cross-examina- tion to Doe, even though this is provided to students facing other violations. Judge orders Schlissel to district court On Wednesday night, the city of Ann Arbor held an open forum event for residents to meet the three final candi- dates for a new chief of police: Michael Cox of Boston, Bryan Jarrell of Arizona and Ann Arbor’s Jason Forsberg. There were nearly 50 attendees from City Council members to police officers and civilians. In the casual, cocktail hour-style event, attendees were able to openly converse with the candidates. Cox, Jar- rell and Forsberg each spoke with The Daily about a range of issues including their past experience, their thoughts on cross-jurisdiction cooperation with the University of Michi- gan police and their plans to move forward with the new Independent Community Police Oversight Commission. For nearly 25 years, Ser- geant Bill Clock has served with the Ann Arbor Police Department. Clock said he and his fellow officers would want a chief who is committed to the department, open to offi- cers’ ideas, well-educated and experienced. “I think the biggest thing for me is someone who will listen to our suggestions and what we want and then make the decision and that’s the decision,” Clock said. “They’re the boss, and they’re going to choose.” The new chief of police will be replacing Robert Pfannes, interim chief of police, who is planning to retire May 24. Pfannes has spent 21 years with the Ann Arbor Police Department as Deputy Chief. “We just need stable leader- ship,” Clock said. “I think we’re open to whatever direction we go. We haven’t had a true chief for over a year, so it’s tough to kind of move forward and progress without that. What- ever candidate is chosen, I’m sure will be best for the job. We just want stable leadership.” Ann Arbor’s new ICPOC has been at the center of the search for a new chief. The commission was formed as civilian monitoring of the AAPD following the fatal shooting of Aura Rosser in 2014 by an officer, and the posi- tion’s public listing noted the commission as a unique chal- lenge for the appointee. Councilmember Ali Ram- lawi, D-Ward 5, is one of the City Council’s two lesions on the oversight commission. Ramlawi told The Daily what the commission is looking for in a new chief, noting commit- ment and open-mindedness. “I think one that is open to new ideas; one that has faced some of the challenges we face here — somebody who has some longevity,” Ramlawi said. “I’d like to see someone who’s going to be here for a while, and someone who’s receptive, asking questions, interested, really trying to get to know the challenges in the community and know how to apply themselves. We’re look- ing for a lot of things. No one is perfect. We’re looking for the type of person who fits the needs of our community.” The oversight commission has held two official meetings, one of which was an emergen- cy meeting Tuesday night with the city’s HR department. For- mer HR director Robyn Wilk- erson resigned May 1 after accusations of sending inap- propriate text messages which were negative toward the Black Lives Matter movement and the oversight commission. The commission convened to investigate whether Wilk- erson’s actions tainted the recruitment process for a new police chief. Assistant City Administra- tor John Fournier was also present at the meeting. Fourni- er said it was an “illuminating” meeting and provided a lot of insight to the public regarding how the recruitment process was carried out. “When you’re in a position of public importance and pub- lic service, it’s really impor- tant to be transparent, and it’s really important to be open to oversight and communication and things like that,” Fournier said. “We take that really seri- ously in Ann Arbor.” Ramlawi said he was sat- isfied with how the meeting transpired. “I feel more comfortable knowing that officials from our city have gone on record indicating (contamination of the recruitment process) wasn’t the case,” Ramlawi said. “It gives the community more confidence and comfort in the process.” Clock said he has con- fidence in the profes- sionalism of the police department and does not believe they need an over- sight commission, but he respects the city residents’ desire to establish one nonetheless. Candidates discuss police oversight commission, communication strategy at meet and greet with community members Wednesday ‘U’ appeal denied by district judge, Schlissel to appear in court June 11 ALEC COHEN/Daily Ann Arbor police chief candidates (from left) Michael Cox, Bryan Jarrell and Jason Forsberg speak to Ann Arbor community members during the Meet the Candidates Recpetion at City Hall Wednesday evening. Read more at michigandaily.com AAPD narrows search for new police chief to top three MELANIE TAYLOR Summer News Editor ALEX HARRING Summer Managing News Editor Read more at michigandaily.com