Ad Disclosure
Report: MSU student allegedly raped by basketball players in 2015 to hold news conference
Published:
A Michigan State student who was allegedly raped by three players on the school’s basketball team in 2015 plans to hold a news conference in East Lansing on Thursday to discuss her federal lawsuit against the university, according to a report.
In an interview with the New York Times last week, Bailey Kowalski said that she plans to hold a news conference to help other victims — at Michigan State or elsewhere — find their voice.
“I don’t want any other girl who has gone through this, or who God forbid may have to go through something like this, to feel for one second that they should be too afraid to come out and do something,” Kowalski said.
Kowalski has not named the players involved in the case and filed the lawsuit against Michigan State University in April 2018. She alleges she was raped by three members of the Spartans basketball team following a party.
She reported the rape to a counselor at the Michigan State Counseling Center in April 2015 but was discouraged from pressing forward when she mentioned it involved members of the basketball team. According to the lawsuit, Kowalski was told “she faced an uphill battle that would create anxiety and unwanted media attention and publicity as had happened with many other female students who were sexually assaulted by well-known athletes.”
Kowalski never reported the alleged assault to police.
Michigan State filed a motion to dismiss the case, arguing that the university cannot be sued because the rape did not occur on campus.
Dustin grew up in the heart of Big Ten country and has been in sports media since 2010. He has been covering Big Ten football since 2014. You can follow him on Twitter: @SchutteCFB