May 15, 2014

Statement from Daniel Kopin

Lena Sclove has been painting a false picture of what happened between us on the night of
August 2, 2013. For three weeks before that date, we had been engaged in a consensual sexual
relationship, and our activities that night were also consensual. I never acted forcefully in any
way towards Lena. She was a friend and someone I cared about.
Browns three-member Student Conduct Board, applying a more likely than not standard,
decided I was responsible for sexual misconduct as defined by Browns disciplinary code. I
disagreed with the decision and would have challenged it if I could. But an appeal on grounds of
innocence is not allowed under Browns rules, and I had no choice but to accept a one-year
suspension. I left campus on October 18.
On April 22, after meeting all the conditions Brown placed on me (including weekly counseling
and a no-contact order), I petitioned Brown for readmission. I was given every indication I
would be permitted to resume my studies in September 2014. But Lena and her supporters staged
a rally outside Browns gates to protest my return. The student newspaper, The Brown Daily
Herald, wrote about the rally and identified me by name, a gross violation of journalistic
principles and my privacy, since no criminal charges were ever filed against me. Online media
sites repeated the Daily Heralds error-riddled story and amplified the false allegations made
about me during the rally.
My instinct was to push forward with my petition to come back to Brown, but it soon became
clear that mob rule had taken the place of due process, and that if I returned to school I would be
the target of more rallies and more false accusations and my ability to pursue my studies would
be impossible. Reluctantly, I concluded that I couldnt return to Brown under such
circumstances, and I withdrew my petition.
Having succeeded in driving me from Brown, Lena now seems determined to inflict as much
damage to my reputation as possible. For my part, I will continue to state the truth: that Lena and
I had a consensual relationship, including on the night of August 2; that I was never violent
toward her in any way; and that her claims about me are not truthful. I hope the current debate
over campus sexual assault policies will lead to reform of a student disciplinary process that is
fundamentally flawed and that serves neither the accusers nor the accused.
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