This week we’re seeing what may be the next step in a hopeful trend on American university campuses when it comes to the whole “rape culture” saga. At Colorado State University-Pueblo, a student football player was dropped from the team and suspended after being accused of rape last year. But as with so many cases at colleges around the country, there was virtually no evidence of a crime having been committed and charges were never filed. The kangaroo court set up at the school acted alone, absent any normal legal protocols.

But the student, Grant Neal, wound up suing both the school and the United States government, claiming gender discrimination and declaring that the Department of Education’s sexual assault guidance violates federal laws. That case is apparently not going to make it very far up the judicial chain because the university is settling with him. (CBS Denver)

Newly filed federal court documents indicate Colorado State University-Pueblo has reached an agreement with a former student, Grant Neal, to pay him and settle a lawsuit Neal filed after he was essentially thrown out of the university after what he believed was an act of consensual sex with a female student.

“It weighs on me because I see my life being ripped away for no justifiable reason,” Neal said in 2016 during an interview with CBS4…

Neal did not respond to CBS4 inquiries seeking more information on the tentative settlement.

Cora Zaletel, a CSU- Pueblo spokesperson, told CBS4, “The University is unable to comment at this time due to ongoing negotiations.”

If you missed this sordid story when it first broke last year, this 2016 segment from Megyn Kelly has the full background and an interview with Grant Neal.

One of the big questions is whether or not this case can be cited in other, similar actions being taken around the country. What happened to Grant Neal is beyond outrageous, but all too common on American campuses today. The alleged “sexual assault” which the college found him “guilty” of wasn’t even a case of he said – she said. In this situation neither he nor she said that she was assaulted. The claim was brought by another student who knew the alleged victim.

Neal had no legal representation of the sort he would be entitled to in a court of law. He was never convicted of a crime and, as I pointed out above, he was never even charged with one. But his scholastic progress and career potential were destroyed along with his reputation by an out of control kangaroo court summoned out of thin air by the college. And those Department of Education guidelines, which advise schools to act if the accused is “more than likely responsible for sexual misconduct” are the poison pill which allows this to happen.

We’re talking about accusing someone of a very serious, violent crime. How can the police not be involved? Betsy DeVos came out last week and said that she would be moving quickly to take a fresh pass at those guidelines, which is welcome news indeed. Sadly, it’s coming far too late to help Grant Neal.