The Department’s investigation was concerned only with the matter of violations of law, and not with breaches of moral or ethical responsibilities that may apply in the matter.
During the course of the investigation, the GPD attempted to contact all parties known to it through the GRACE Report. The Department was contacted by twenty individuals regarding possible instances in which BJU staff may have failed to comply with the statutory duty to report. Many of the reports involved incidents that were alleged to have occurred years earlier, and often in locations outside of Greenville County. After conducting multiple witness interviews, the GPD requested and obtained educational and student records for thirteen of the responding individuals directly from Bob Jones University.
After interviewing all available witnesses, reviewing historical documentation, and consulting with the Solicitor, it was jointly concluded that there is insufficient evidence to establish probable cause or prove beyond a reasonable doubt that either the faculty or administration of BJU in place at that time violated the mandatory reporting law in the cases we reviewed. However, the GPD is currently conducting one investigation of sexual assault between two former students of BJU, as the incident occurred on campus and within GPD jurisdiction in 1988. This incident did not involve SC Code 64-7-310, but was reported to BJU Public Safety; however, the victim declined to prosecute at that time.
As is the situation with any investigation of this nature, the Department will actively investigate any new relevant information in these cases, investigate any new complaints if contacted by other victims described in the GRACE Report, and make appropriate referrals to police departments in other jurisdictions where alleged crimes may have occurred.