Any college student facing a charge of academic dishonesty faces enormous obstacles in overcoming a false charge. The public colleges in Connecticut give that student a right to a hearing to prove their innocence. If the student loses that hearing, the student can sue the college for due process violations. If that happens, then is it crucial that the falsely accused student show the court what happened in the hearing. At a four year state college, the student has a right to have a record made of the hearing. The hearing will be taped so that a reviewing court can listen to it or read a written transcript. What about community college students? No such right! This puts community college students at a great disadvantage when it comes time to sue the school. What could possibly be the reason for such a discrepancy? Community college students, as a group, are poorer than university students. There may be more non-whites in the community college student body. There are more adult students, trying to balance work and child care with school. None of this justifies second class justice for community college students. At Zimberlin Law LLC, we believe that community college students should be entitled to the same due process protections that university students have. We will fight to ensure that your rights are protected.
