Judge hears accusations of UNR corruption

Tuesday, September 22, 2009 - 2:07 AM


Download .PDF of the condensed complaints

Timeline of the criminal complaint

  • Terri Patraw, Lane Grow and Richard Schweickert filed the criminal complaint in May 2008. Hussein  S. Hussein was part of the original filing but later removed his name.
  • The Washoe County District Court dismissed the criminal complaint soon after.
  • The complainants appealed to the Nevada Supreme Court and won a second look at the complaint.
  • District Court Judge Connie Steinheimer will determine if the complaint deserves a grand jury investigation and must write an analysis of her decision.

The complaintants

  • Terri Patraw is a former Nevada soccer coach who resigned soon after the start of the 2007 season. She claims she was harassed after filing a Title IX complaint with the NCAA concerning the conduct of other coaches. She has two lawsuits against the university.
  • Lane Grow is a former UNRPD sergeant who was fired last year. He has filed four lawsuits against UNR and UNRPD officials alleging sexism, ageism and the department protect alcoholics in its ranks.
  • Richard Schweickert is a geological sciences professor at UNR. He has four lawsuits against the university with claims of intimidation and unfair faculty review policies.

By the numbers

  • 10 is the number of lawsuits the complainants have against the university.
  • 16 are the months this complaint has been in the works.
  • 5,000 are the pages of evidence submitted.
  • 750 are the pages of the complaint’s first of four volumes against the university.

The evidentiary hearing Thursday and Friday into allegations of vast corruption at the University of Nevada, Reno began with the juxtaposition of photos of UNR President Milton Glick and gangster Al Capone.

It ended with Washoe County District Court Judge Connie Steinheimer saying it will take a long time to determine if the allegations and their 5,000 pages of evidence warrant a grand jury investigation.

The complainants – former soccer coach Terri Patraw, former UNR Police Department Sgt. Lane Grow and current geological sciences professor Richard Schweickert – allege a vast criminal conspiracy at UNR. The criminal complaint includes allegations of embezzlement of millions of dollars, intimidation by UNR officials, extortion, abuse of power and the use of the UNRPD as a “private police force.”

The three complainants, who each have filed several pending civil lawsuits against UNR, testified at the two-day hearing and questioned several others who have filed civil lawsuits against the university. The complainants referenced the several binders of evidence they submitted and used a PowerPoint presentation to make their case.

“At first you probably thought this was a pretty outrageous claim,” Schweickert said in his closing testimony, “but we argue to you we have met our burden of reasonable evidence.”

The university refutes the claims, though its representatives were not allowed to testify at the evidentiary hearing.

UNR spokeswoman Jane Tors said the allegations in the criminal complaint are similar to many made in a complaint filed with the Attorney General’s office in April 2008 by Schweickert and fired UNR professor Hussein S. Hussein. The Attorney General’s office found no basis for a criminal investigation.

Chief Criminal Deputy Attorney General Conrad Hafen said in the brief dismissing the department’s investigation that many of the allegations “appear to be nonsensical” and in conflict with information from other sources.

Grow, Hussein, Patraw and Schweickert filed this criminal complaint in May 2008, with Hussein later removing his name as a complainant. After the district court dismissed the complaint, they appealed to the Nevada Supreme Court and were awarded a second look, with the Supreme Court demanding a detailed analysis justifying the court’s ruling.

“We certainly respect the decision of the Supreme Court to ensure that the appropriate procedural steps are followed, and we remain confident that these allegations will again be found to be without merit,” Tors wrote in the statement.

Several witnesses testified to a variety of alleged crimes committed by UNR officials, including illegal no-bid contracts at UNR and being forced from their job after filing sexual harassment claims or raising issues with drinking at the police department.

Mary M. Lahren, a former geological sciences professor, said the then-chair of her department shoved a pipe between her legs and rubbed it against her genitals. When she complained, she said the administration sided with her boss and fought to stop her from receiving research money from the National Science Foundation.

She said the incident drove her to quit.

Schweickert said many other witnesses declined to come forward because they feared retaliation by UNR officials. He said he “may very well be ending (his) career by testifying” at the impaneling.

Hussein, a witness in the testimony who filed about a dozen of his own lawsuits against UNR, was fired in May 2008 in what he called retaliation for his suits.

He claims upward of $3.5 million was embezzled by a former colleague at CABNR and testified to having evidence of the embezzlement at the hearing.

Judge Steinheimer repeatedly asked Hussein to keep his testimony based in fact and away from hearsay and conjecture.

Grow, a former UNRPD officer of 16 years, has filed several suits of his own. He says UNRPD officers and leaders harassed Hussein, protected drunks at the department and rocketed former UNRPD Lt. Kevin Youngflesh through the ranks after Youngflesh was demoted to officer for driving drunk in a state vehicle.

Youngflesh was later fired for another alcochol-related incident but the state forced UNRPD to rehire him. Youngflesh no longer works at the university.

Grow said he was fired after being convicted of four misdemeanors for vehicle registration issues, including illegally registering two vehicles out of state. He said it was part of retaliation by UNR officials for filing complaints about the office.

“It’s another antic by (UNR officials) to try and discredit anyone who tries to bring any claims against them,” Grow testified.

Another former UNRPD officer, Eric Hague, said he was forced into medical leave after he refused to stop patrolling for drunk drivers. He now works for the Reno Police Department.

Patraw resigned a season after taking the Wolf Pack soccer team to its first NCAA Tournament for what she said was unfair treatment for filing a whistle-blower complaint against UNR. She claimed at the hearing that officials at the university sought to harass and silence her through a campus ban and reports filed with UNRPD.

She said the harassment and other illegal activities continued at the hands of UNR lawyers when her lawsuits were filed.

“We have falsification of evidence, we have perjury, we have … oh jeez, there’s too many for me to rattle off at the top of my head,” Patraw said at the beginning of her day-one testimony.

She said UNR lawyers attempted to keep her from testifying by filing a temporary restraining order against her. In day one, Steinheimer said the restraining order didn’t apply in court.

On Friday, court was disrupted when Kent Robison, a lawyer representing UNR, presented Patraw with temporary restraining order documents. He said the paperwork was just a copy of the original order filed against Patraw prior to the hearing.

Patraw and the other complainants said it was an attempt to waste time for the hearing, which needed to conclude Friday.

The judge recessed the court for an hour, ignored the papers and allowed the hearing to finish later than scheduled.

Aaron Benedetti and Nick Coltrain can be reached at news@nevadasagebrush.com.

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10 Responses to “Judge hears accusations of UNR corruption”

Trueblood says: September 23rd, 2009 at 2:16 pm

Nick Coltrain is a biased s**thead who is in bed with the UNR lawyers. He should be kicked off the paper.

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ARC says: September 24th, 2009 at 12:40 am

Just what UNR needs for national recognition. That being said, if crimes are being committed, then it has to be outed and dealt with no matter what the ignominy will cost.

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Howard Rapp says: September 24th, 2009 at 9:01 am

Grow some balls and leave your real name if you want to start throwing mud.

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Shelby says: September 24th, 2009 at 5:14 pm

Schweickert’s case was REVERSED by the Supreme Court. And Grow has never had his cases thrown out or heard yet. they are making their way through the courts. and Patraw’s whistleblower was REVERSED. The grand jury hearing was REVERSED too by the Supremes. So it looks to me like these folks have to appeal to get justice. is there corruption in the reno district court? smells like it.

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Trueblood says: September 24th, 2009 at 5:14 pm

I doubt Howard Rapp is even your real name. Your just an idiot pussy cracker whose trying to defend a biased reporter. We don’t need to reveal our names because the site is being watched by criminals who are against free speech. By the sounds of it, your probobly one of those gross ghetto students at UNR that makes the school look like a trash can. It is a trash can.

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Eric Thornley says: September 25th, 2009 at 8:58 am

Well, I would say UNR does support free speech, they just ignore people who like to speak the truth. Look at me, I speak against UNR when it comes to athletics all the time. Yet, I haven’t been “disappeared” or disposed of like Trotsky. :P

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DUUUUUUUUUUUDE says: September 25th, 2009 at 1:07 pm

lol… this is funny.

If what I understand is correct, the grand jury hearing was reversed not due to any evidentiary claims, but because a judge made a mistake.

Something tells me that Shelby and Trueblood are intimately connected with these cases… The article is not an opinion piece, and does not side with either argument.

Free speech is not jumping down the throats of reporters who are giving publicity to YOUR cases, Shelby and Trueblood.

Also, “idiot pussy cracker” is my new favorite insult. lol

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Shelby says: September 25th, 2009 at 2:55 pm

I made no comment on the reporter or article. My comment was on the court. The supremes did not say the judge made a mistake. The supremes said the judge manifestly abused her authority and did not follow the law. There is a big difference between that statement and a mistake. I am not connected to the case but do support it as I know how corrupt the administration is at the U.

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Cardnl Syn says: September 25th, 2009 at 9:59 pm

If you would like to discuss the corruption at UNR visit this site and become a member.

http://forums.delphiforums.com/coughnkees

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UNR Retaliates if you leave a name says: November 19th, 2009 at 10:22 pm

http://system.nevada.edu/Board-of-R/Handbook/TITLE-2—/T2-CH06—Rules-and-Disciplinary-Pro.pdf

Please consider whether UNR and the Office of Student Conduct (OSC) engage in attempts to mislead students with regard to what rights they have under the NSHE Code. Ask yourself why is it that the Code of Conduct posted on the UNR website appears to purport to detail all the rights and procedures that attach to students, yet omits many key protections that UNR is required to provide students under the NSHE Code:
http://www.unr.edu/sjmas/

Ask yourself what NSHE 6.7.4 means “6.7.4 Combined Duties. The president may combine the duties of the administrative officer (at UNR, these Administrative Officers are Carol Millie and Sally Morgan) with those of any other person employed by the System institution, but may not combine such administrative officer duties with those performed by hearing officers or hearing committee members under the procedures of this chapter.” Does this mean Carol Millie and Sally Morgan are not allowed to act as both prosecutor and judge? Does this violate NSHE 6.7.4 by combining the duties of a prosecutor and a judge? Does the OSC intimidate students into signing a form that states that the “student accepts responsibility” in lieu of the student having a hearing? Are students threatened with greater charges in exchanged to copping pleas to lesser offenses? Is this ethical? Do the Administrative Officers at the OSC “provide legal advice” to such students when arranging these plea bargains? Is it the illegal and or unauthorized practice of law without a license when this is done?

Section 6.7 Administrative Officer
6.7.1 Appointment of Administrative Officer. The president of each System
institution shall appoint, on either an ad hoc or a continuing basis, a person who
shall have the authority to perform the duties established for the administrative
officer in this chapter. The president may assign either a staff member of the
System institution, or alternatively, may engage the services of an attorney who
has been a member of the State Bar of Nevada at least five years or who is
otherwise qualified by professional experience in administrative law. The person
so assigned to these duties shall serve in this assignment at the pleasure of the
president.
It is the intent of the Board that this position shall not be used to create the basis
for an on-campus staff attorney appointment that will report directly or indirectly
to the institutional president. In order to assure an appropriate separation of
responsibilities, the job description of the person appointed as administrative
officer must be approved by the Executive Vice Chancellor & Chief Counsel prior
to appointment. The person appointed to perform the duties of administrative
officer shall not represent the System institution nor engage in the practice of law
on behalf of the System institution, including, but not limited to, the rendering of
legal advice or opinions.

So lets take a look at what UNR has in their Student Code of Conduct, available for download at http://www.unr.edu/sjmas/Judicial1.htm :

“SECTION I: STUDENT CODE OF CONDUCT

The Nevada System of Higher Education (NSHE) have established regulations for student conduct that augment local, state and national law. Subsection A includes prohibited conduct established by the University of Nevada, Reno; Subsection B includes those regulations governing the entire Nevada System of Higher Education (NSHE); and Subsection C contains additional university policies…. Subsection B: Nevada System of Higher Education Regulations
In addition to regulations for student conduct for the University of Nevada, Reno, all students and student organizations are responsible for following the regulations for the entire university and community college system. The 20 prohibited activities, as found in the University and Community College System Code, Section 6.2.2, are listed below…”

So reading that, one would be led to believe that a review of Subsection B would provide a complete view of those regulations provided to protect student’s right in the NSHE Code, right? Wrong, wrong, wrong.

One needs to deterimine whether UNR or other NSHE member institution are required to follow the NSHE Code. NSHE Code Section 6.1 “Scope of the Chapter 6.1.1 Applicability of Procedures and Sanctions. The procedures and sanctions established in this chapter are applicable to the resolution and determination of charges against members of the community of the Nevada System of Higher Education for allegedly engaging in conduct prohibited by the Nevada System of Higher Education Code or by other applicable stated policies, procedures, rules, regulations or bylaws of the System institutions. Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, the NSHE institutions and professional schools may establish written policies, procedures and sanctions for the discipline of its students that may be used in lieu of the policies, procedures and sanctions of this chapter, including but not limited to the establishment of student judicial councils, subject to the prior review by the Chief Counsel and to the approval of the president of the institution.”

Even if NSHE 6.1 can be taken to mean that UNR may may establish written policies, procedures and sanctions for the discipline of its students that may be used in lieu of the policies, procedures and sanctions of this chapter”, to the extent that UNR’s Code of Conduct purports to be based on or stemming from the NSHE Code, then all fo the NSHE should apply to UNR. Regardless the following passage from UNR’s Code of Conduct clearly establish that it intends for all of the provisions of the NSHE Code to be incorporated by reference in the UNR Code of Conduct: “SECTION I: STUDENT JUDICIAL CODE The University of Nevada, Reno and the Nevada System of Higher Education (NSHE) have established regulations for student conduct that augment local, state and national law. Subsection A includes prohibited conduct established by the University of Nevada, Reno; Subsection B includes those regulations governing the entire Nevada System of Higher Education (NSHE); and Subsection C contains additional university policies.” There is clearly no language attempting to limit the application of any portion of the NSHE within UNR’s Code of Conduct.

Ask yourself, should the Director of the Office of Student Conduct be paid over $90,000 a year? That is twice as much as the average public defender starts out at. Three times as much as your average high school teacher.

what is really interesting is all the links on the various pages of the UNR website that just do not work! Pretty much an link to any form to file a complaint against UNR or request documents UNR does not want people to see will either not exist or not work or require personally going to a hostile and antagonistic UNR administrator to request such documents in a non-anonymous setting where documents are sought, the release of which is contrary to the interests of those from who the documents are sought (think UNRPD, Police Services, UNR Public Records Officers, Sexual Harassment Complaint Process, etc)…Just plain will not open…The link to the NSHE Code (the opening of which might inform students of the many additional rights they have that UNR’s websites mislead student’s into thinking they would be aware of after reviewing the Code of Conduct on the UNR site) just plain isn’t even hyperlinked:
http://www.unr.edu/sjmas/Judicial1.htm

It says it is a link, but you can’t even click on it. Why is that? Is it inconvenient to have students know things like the NSHE Code requires the following things that the UNR website just plain forgets to mention, while lulling students into the feeling that they are well informed if they review the Code of Conduct posted on the UNR site:

http://system.nevada.edu/Board-of-R/Handbook/TITLE-2—/T2-CH02—Academic-Freedom-and-Respo.pdf

The http://www.UNR.edu website omits many, many important protections to student’s right found in the NSHE system code, such as requirements for notice, what must be in a charging letter, who must schedule the date of a hearing and how notice of the date, place and time must be delivered to the University.

Please make all your employees aware of this and stop drinking UNR’s corrupt Kool-Aid.

Please make the Sagebrush and Student Legal Services aware of these inequities and attempts to mislead students and call and ask the Office of Student Conduct about these matters and whether students have access to the text of the established procedures for the informal and formal resolution of matters before their office, including those that shift the burden from their Office to provide notice, via registered mail of the date place and time of hearing to the student to coordinate and or schedule a meeting with the OFC..

http://www.unrgrandjury.com/
http://blog.terri-patraw.info/

Perhaps the best thing to do for the Sagebrush and the ASUN Student Legal Services teams is to do a side by side review of what students right are according to the Student Code of Conduct one downloads from the UNR website and compare how that differs to the procedural protections afforded students by the NHSE Code.
Here they are:
http://www.unr.edu/sjmas/Judicial1.htm
http://system.nevada.edu/Board-of-R/Handbook/TITLE-2—/T2-CH06—Rules-and-Disciplinary-Pro.pdf

The following list of egregious omissions and attempts to mislead on UNR’s part is BY NO MEANS COMPLETE. There exists many student’s rights protections found in the NSHE Code that UNR’s Code of Conduct does not mention, despite UNR saying that the UNR Code of Conduct’s “procedures for carrying out student discipline are based upon those procedures established by the Nevada System of Higher Education, found in Chapter 6 of the Board of Regents Code.” UNR fails to mention to students that UNR’s Code of Conduct is not allowed to edit the NSHE Code or take away rights afforded students by the NSHE Code. However, to the extent that UNR’s Code of Conduct affords students more rights or protections than those found in the NSHE, UNR MUST follow its own Code of Conduct and afford any such protections. Protections found in the NSHE Code that UNR’s Code of Conduct misleads student’s into believing do not exist:
1. NSHE 6.8 Decision to Hold Hearings
6.8.1 Complaints. Except as may be provided in Section 6.6 of the Nevada System of Higher Education Code, all complaints alleging conduct prohibited by Section 6.2 of the Nevada System of Higher Education Code or by applicable stated prohibitions, policies, procedures, rules, regulations or bylaws of the System institutions shall be filed with the administrative officer. The complaint shall be in writing, shall be signed by the complainant and shall, to the extent reasonably possible, specify the date, time, place, person or persons involved and the circumstances of the alleged prohibited conduct, including the name or names of persons who may have witnessed the alleged prohibited conduct.

UNR seems to be asserting the such complaints need not be signed, nor in writing, and can be made anonymously were it suits UNR’s purposes.

2. NSHE 6.8.2 Investigation, Informal Resolution or Recommendation for Hearing. (a) The administrative officer shall investigate complaints with the purpose of clarifying the facts and the positions taken by the parties. The investigation shall be completed within 60 calendar days after the receipt of the complaint. (B/R 5/92) (b) The administrative officer shall present a charging letter to the person charged who may present a written answer within 7 college working days after receipt thereof. At a minimum, the charging letter shall contain the information specified in Subsection 6.8.1 of the Nevada System of Higher Education Code. The administrative officer shall inform the person charged in writing that, although the person charged is free to make a written reply, there is no requirement or compulsion to do so.

UNR is seemingly asserting that it need not comply with the requirements of NSHE 6.8.2, which makes it hard for a student to defend themselves when they are essentially left to fly blind in the preceding and not afforded even the most basic information required by traditional due process principles to defend themselves (name of accuser, specificity of charge, evidence in support of the charge, etc.). UNR’s Code of Conduct merrily fails to include the dictates of NSHE 6.8.1 and 6.8.2.

It is common for UNR’s Office of Student Conduct to send a casual sounding letter or email via regular, uncertified mail to a student asking the student to meet with their office within two weeks. Should the student fail call and schedule such a meeting or encounter delays related to UNR’s refusal to provide responses to relevant request production documents and evidence supporting the charges, or copies of the signed written complaint prior to any such meeting, upon the expiration of two weeks, the student will receive a formal punishment from the OSC in light of their failure to attend a required hearing. As such, such a student was never noticed regarding the date, time, and place of any hearing, as required by NSHE Code, nor was the student allowed access to essential documentation supporting the charge or contemplated for evidentiary use at any such hearing.

This is completely unfair, especially when considering how grossly overpaid the Director of the Office of Student Conduct is (did you know she makes over $90,000 a year in salary from UNR?) and how difficult it is to be a student, constantly bombarded by ridiculous fee increases, phony funding crisis laments, indoctrination, the overbearing ego of academicians and administrators, and probably working two crappy part-time jobs just to survive, all the while facing the entirely plausible possibility that the degree one is pursuing is essentially worthless and does little to nothing to make marketable, prepare or qualify you for gainful employment post-college.

Further, it is time ASUN Student Legal Services, the Sagebrush, and UNR’s Students demand real answers with regard to exactly how much and what is monitored with regard to student’s use of the university computer network, and not accept vague reassurances that some packet shaping technology allows UNR to monitor all traffic to the RIAA’s heart’s content whilst also satisfying the ACLU gurus so handsomely paid by UNR and the individual privacy protection proponents. Further, inquiries need to be made regarding what level of retaliation and intimidation is occurring against students and whether the judicial punishments meted out by UNR are consistent from student to student and based in principals rather than politics, personality, persuasion, preference, or cronyism.

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