Cal Poly IFC
Judicial Proceedings
Statement of Purpose:
The purpose of this body, known as the Judicial Board is to enforce policies, rules and regulations of the Interfraternity Council and Cal Poly University to maintain appropriate standards of conduct. This board will serve to establish judicial precedents, hear cases brought before it, and deter unacceptable conduct. The sanctions imposed by the Judicial Board are intended to be not only rehabilitative, but also educational. They are expected to be consistent and fair to all fraternities involved. In doing so, the committee hopes to promote responsible behavior within these organizations and strengthen the overall image of fraternities on Cal Poly’s campus.
Jurisdiction:
1)The Judicial Board has responsibility for hearing cases involving individual fraternity members and/or entire chapters charged with violating IFC or Cal Poly policies and rules. The Judicial Board has jurisdiction over individual members of those organizations. However, in applicable cases, individuals will be referred to the Cal Poly Office of Student Rights and Responsibilities.
a)There is no minimum number of members who must be involved in an incident before disciplinary action may be taken against a chapter; in some instances, the misconduct of a single member may prove sufficient grounds for action taken against an entire chapter. There may also be instances when individual fraternity members will be reviewed by the Judicial Board, but will not provide enough sufficient grounds for action to be taken against an entire chapter.
b)The Judicial Board will not hear cases that involve situations with individual members outside an official event or fraternity related function. The Judicial Board will use their discretion to determine if the incident occurred at an official event or fraternity related function.
2)The Judicial Board will also hear appeals regarding sanctions levied by IFC.
Composition:
3)The Judicial Board will be popularly elected by the IFC presidents and serve a term of two quarters.
a)One board will serve Winter and Spring quarters, and the next will serve Summer and Fall quarters.
b)A member of the Judicial Board may run for re-election.
4)Criteria for Judicial Board Members
a)One applicant is allowed per house.
b)The applicant must be a current or past president or executive board member.A president or judicial director is preferred.
c)Members must in good standing with their respective chapter.
5)The board will consist of 6 members and 2 alternates.
a)Of the 8 total individuals, 4 will be from houses with membership above the median IFC house size (large houses), and 4 will be from houses with membership at or below the median IFC house size (small houses).
b)The top 3 applicants from large houses who receive the most votes will be on the Judicial Board, and the applicant with 4th highest amount of votes will be the alternate. The top 3 applicants from small houses who receive the most votes will be on the Judicial Board, and the applicant with 4th highest amount of votes will be the alternate.
6)Alternates
a)The alternates will still participate in every judicial meeting and hearing, but when the Judicial Board votes on official sanctions, they will not participate in the vote.
b)In the event that one of the regular members of the Judicial Board is not present, an alternate will take his place.
c)In the event that a Judicial Board member’s own fraternity is recommended for judicial action, that member will not participate in any associated proceedings and the alternate will take his place.
7)The head of the Judicial Board will be the IFC Judicial Director.
8)The responsibilities of the IFC Judicial Directorinclude:
a)Scheduling hearings regarding the complaints.
b)Notifying presidents about hearings pertaining to their chapters and any sanctions that result from these hearings.
c)Ensuring the proper procedure is observed during the hearings
9)The Greek Advisor will serve as an ex-officio member of the Judicial Board. In this way, he/she will ensure any sanctions made by the Judicial Board are appropriate, the Judicial Board is acting justly, and the process is fair. Further, the Greek Advisor shall serve in an advisory capacity concerning the rights and responsibilities of both parties. This shall include the ability to clarify college and IFC policies and guidelines.
Procedures:
10)To begin the process for Judicial Board action, an individual or chapter must file an incident report with the IFC Judicial Director. In order to bring charges before the Judicial Board, the incident report must be signed and submitted no more than 7 days (including weekends) after the alleged incident occurred.
11)Upon receipt of a violation report, the IFC Judicial Director,Greek Advisor, and the Associate Director of Student Life and Leadership will meet to discuss the case and determine whether a case shall be brought to the Judicial Board.
12)If a case is to be brought to the Judicial Board, the IFC Judicial Director shall, by way of email and phone call, notify the chapters(s) and/or individuals of the charges.
a)The president of the involved houses will receive a phone call from the IFC Judicial Director to notify them of the incident and any charges.
b)The email shall specify a hearing date at least 4 calendar days after the date the email is sent (unless the fraternity should request an earlier hearing date) and shall direct the organization (through its appointed representatives) to appear at the hearing.
c)The email shall also:
i)Describe the alleged violation
ii)Advise the organization of its rights:
(1)To a private hearing
(2)To appear at the hearing with an advisor
(3)To present testimony of witnesses, documentary, or other evidence
(4)To appeal
13)The fraternity charged with misconduct has the right to have an advisor present during the hearing(s).
14)The aggrieved party shall have the same rights as the fraternity charged with misconduct (i.e. the right to call witnesses, the right to have an advisor present, etc.).
15)Witnesses are permitted to be present in the hearing only while presenting evidence.
16)The Judicial Board has the right to call before it all witnesses and/or documentary evidence it considers to be essential to rendering a decision. Penalties may be assigned to the individual and/or chapters which fail to appear or provide evidence before the Judicial Board. In the event where an individual fails to appear before the Judicial Board at the Judicial Board’s request, the Judicial Board reserves the right to penalize the individual’s
chapter, as well as the individual (provided the witness is a member of a fraternity).
a)In the interest of privacy for those involved, witnesses may not have to testify in front of the accused fraternity. This will be at the discretion of the Judicial Board.
17)If a representative from the chapter in question fails to appear at the hearing, the Judicial Boardwill reschedule the hearing and levy a fine of $150.
Hearings
18)Order of Hearings
a)Clarification of the hearing process.
b)Explanation of the charges for the hearing.
c)Presentation of the evidence and testimony of witnesses against a chapter
d)Cross-examination of witnesses.
e)Presentation of evidence and testimony of witnesses on behalf of a chapter.
f)Cross examination of witnesses.
g)Judicial Boardasks questions of the chapter/individuals in question.
h)Concluding statements by the spokesperson for the parties involved.
i)Deliberations by the Judicial Board in closed session.
Deliberations
19)Only members of the Judicial Board, the IFC Judicial Director and the Greek Advisor may be present during deliberations
20)After sufficient discussion the issue will be called to a vote. Each member of the Judicial Board and the IFC Judicial Director will receive one vote.
21)A simple majority vote (51%) is required to decide to the case.
Decisions
22)After deliberation, the Judicial Board may reach one of the following decisions:
a)Innocent
b)Guilty without disciplinary action
c)Guilty with disciplinary action
d)Guilty with referral to the appropriate office or agency for assistance
23)The Judicial Board will inform the parties involved with their decision within four days of the hearings. The email shall contain:
a)Date of the hearing
b)Description of the charge
c)Summary of the case and evidence
d)Decision of the committee with supported reasoning
e)Sanction, if appropriate
f)Details of the appeal procedure
24)The decision is final unless the chapter chooses to appeal.
Appeals
25)A fraternity desiring to appeal a Judicial Board decision must submit a written appeal to the Greek Advisor within 7 days after receiving the written decision.
26)The written appeal must state one or more of the following grounds and the specific rationale for appealing on those grounds:
a)The sanction was arbitrary, capricious, or in abuse of discretion.
b)There is significant new evidence affecting the probable outcome of a case.
27)In the event that another IFC fraternity disagrees with the judicial decision, they may also motion for an appeal. The motion must be approved by a majority 2/3 vote by the IFC presidents.
28)The case details, sanctions, and reason for appeal will then be presented to the IFC Presidents Council at the next IFC general meeting. The presidents will vote on the sanctions with majority vote (51%) winning.
a)If the sanctions are approved, the case is closed and the fraternity in question must complete the proposed sanctions.
b)If the sanctions are voted down:
i)Judicial Board will perform a second review of the case and call any additional necessary hearings.
ii)The Judicial Board will follow standard procedures and vote on a second resolution.
iii)The resolution will be brought in front of the IFC Presidents Council at the next IFC general meeting and they will vote on the resolution with majority vote (51%) winning.
(1)If the resolution is approved, the case is closed and the fraternity in question must complete the proposed sanctions.
(2)If the resolution is voted down:
(a)The case will be reviewed by the IFC Executive Board using the same hearing and deliberation procedures outlined for the Judicial Board.
(b)The decision by the IFC Executive Board will be final.
29)At the conclusion of each case, the IFC Judicial Director shall draft a document detailing the incident, all evidence, the decision and sanctions (if any), and the reasoning behind the decision. This will be kept on file to review and help set precedents.
Sanctions
30)Acceptable sanctions for chapters found responsible for an offense should be consistent with the nature and degree of the offense. This will be dealt with on a case-by-case basis. The Judicial Board shall take into account the seriousness of the offense, the effect of the conduct on any victim(s) and/or the Cal Poly community, the attitude and behavior of the chapter, and any priormisconduct of the chapter. The past offenses of a chapter may only be referenced during sanctioning, but only after determining responsibility. The following two sections include, but are not limited to, possible offenses and sanctions:
Categories of Offenses
31)Minor Offenses:
a)Harassment toward another organization (verbal or written)
b)Minor vandalism
c)Poor behavior at an IFC event (sports, philanthropies, etc.)
d)Failure to comply with intermediate sanctions
e)Minor recruitment violations
32)Intermediate Offenses:
a)Vandalism or property destruction
b)Alcohol violation (not recruitment related)
c)Failure to comply with a major sanction
d)Intermediate recruitment violations
e)Two minor offenses in a six-month period
33)Major Offenses:
a)Hazing
b)Alcohol involved in New Member Education Programming
c)Major alcohol violations
d)Vandalism towards another organization
e)Recruitment related alcohol violation
f)Physical assault
g)Sexual harassment
h)Failure to comply with multiple sanctions
i)Major recruitment violations
j)Third intermediate offense in a six-month period
34)Criminal Charges:
a)In the event that a fraternity has a situation that involves serious criminal charges, they will be referred to Cal Poly Administration for judicial action. This includes but is not limited to incidents involving hazing, sexual assault, physical assault, and alcohol violations.
Categories of Sanctions
35)Minor Sanctions:
a)Letter of reprimand
b)Community service-up to 5 hours per individual member
c)Educational program
d)Letter of apology
e)Optional letter to Headquarters office
f)Appropriate monetary fine
36)Intermediate Sanctions:
a)Community service-up to 10 hours per individual
b)Restitution or re-imbursement
c)Optional letter to Headquarters office
d)Option for probation from no more than one defined organizational privilege including:
i)Participation in social events
ii)Participation in sporting events (including intramurals)
e)Public apology or letter of apology
f)Educational programs
g)Appropriate monetary fine
37)Major Sanctions:
a)Community service-up to 20 hours per member
b)Educational programs
c)Appropriate monetary fine
d)Letter to Headquarters’ office
e)Probation from two or more defined organizational privileges, including but not limited to:
i)Participation in social events
ii)Participation in sporting events (including intramurals)
f)Loss of use of campus facilities
g)Public apology
h)Removal of campus recognition of the chapter and charter
Completion
38)The IFC Judicial Director and theGreek Advisorare responsible for ensuring the completion of all sanctions given by the Judicial Board and defining the time period for completion.
39)In the event a chapter or individual does not complete the specified sanction, the Judicial Board will reconvene to make further decisions/plans of action.
Ethical Expectations for Judicial Board Members
40)Each member of the Judicial Board has the responsibility for maintaining the following ethical standards:
a)All information associated with the hearing is confidential. Violation of the standard shall result in termination from the committee.
b)Sanctioning shall reflect an educational outcome.
c)All committee members shall show respect to one another, as well as to the chapter(s) involved in the complaint. Members shall not make statements or accusations that cannot be substantiated.