The case is taken very seriously by the management of Rennes 2 University. But the complexity and seriousness of the facts of which the former director of Staps is accused oblige him to be very careful. Could the university reinstate its teacher when the latter is indicted in the context of three cases of rape on members of the university? French justice considered that yes. During a hearing of the investigating chamber which took place on June 1, the former director of the UFR won his case, as reported The TelegramFriday, June 17. This Monday, the management of the Rennes university announced that the teacher targeted by the complaints was the subject of “a temporary ban on access to the campus”. According to information collected by 20 minutes, a decree was issued to this effect last week. A relief for the victims but also for the entire Department of Sciences and Techniques of Physical and Sports Activities.
The announcement of the court decision had caused a great stir in the ranks of the staff of the UFR, many of whom were indignant with their management. “There was a form of amazement, of incomprehension because no one expected that”, testifies a teacher to 20 minutes. Suspended since his indictment in 2017, the former director of Staps has still not been tried, and continues to claim his innocence. Since his questioning, he has always sought to reintegrate the university, which he has so far always been refused. “He wanted to come back as if nothing had happened. But the three complainants are still within our walls and the university has an obligation to protect its staff. It is not up to the complainants to adapt. Imagine if he came across one of them”, continues the professor. “It gives me the impression of a justice that protects itself more than it protects the alleged victims. This is not without arousing misunderstandings and concerns for them, ”said another teacher from the department.
A student complaint filed in 2017
The case broke out in 2017, when a 24-year-old doctoral student filed a complaint for harassment, sexual assault, and rape against her thesis director. Presumed innocent, the 52-year-old teacher has always claimed that the relationship was consensual. Two other complaints, made by two teachers from the UFR, were added to the first. The university recalls having seized its disciplinary section, disoriented in another establishment, but which will await “the outcome of the criminal investigation before ruling”.
This ban on access to the campus is brandished as a protective measure that the employer owes to its employees, “in order to preserve the safety and health of its agents”, “in respect of the presumption of innocence”, specifies the management of the university. The CHSCT met in extraordinary session and alerted the presidency. If the teacher in question had received the right to return to the university, he was still prohibited from contacting the complainants. “For them, it’s traumatic. They experienced it badly, ”says this teacher.