Latest news with #Act172
USA Today
6 days ago
- USA Today
Woman gets settlement in case alleging Louisiana colleges ignored rape reports
A woman who sued the University of Louisiana System for failing to protect her from a student she and others accused of rape agreed to settle the lawsuit Aug. 1, days before a trial was set to begin. The woman, who filed the federal lawsuit in the Middle District of Louisiana in May 2022 under the pseudonym Jane Doe, is one of eight women who said that they were sexually assaulted by Victor Daniel Silva. The woman's settlement comes more than four years after a USA TODAY investigation revealed systemic failures by university and law enforcement officials to connect the dots on Silva, who from 2014 to 2020 transferred from Louisiana State University to the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, then to Louisiana Tech University, then back to UL Lafayette – racking up sexual misconduct allegations at every stop. A Louisiana law enacted in 2015 was supposed to help the state's public universities root out sexual offenders on their campuses. Called Act 172, it required colleges and law enforcement agencies to communicate with each other about reports of sex crimes involving students. It also ordered colleges to notify other colleges when students disciplined or under investigation for sexual misconduct tried to transfer. But campus officials repeatedly failed to follow the law. Because they did not communicate with police and each other, they viewed nearly every allegation against Silva as an isolated incident in an otherwise clean record. They closed each complaint against him, sometimes without investigating, allowing him to continue his education without interruption. 'Were it not for the rigorous and deeply compassionate work of investigative journalists and the ineffable bravery of the other victims, my story may have ended the night I was raped, kept in the dark by challenges that make it almost unimaginable to come forward for fear of unbelief and inaction,' the woman, who attended Louisiana Tech, said in an emailed statement to USA TODAY. 'Instead, because of their unrelenting commitment to truth and their courageous vulnerability, I have been fortunate to see my case through to settlement. I hope that our voices ensure that future victims might not have to rely on fortune in order to be heard.' It is USA TODAY's policy not to publish the names of people who allege sexual assault without their permission. 'The University of Louisiana System will continue to prioritize Title IX inquiries and respond with the seriousness they demand,' university system spokesperson Katie Dawson said in an emailed statement. 'Our focus remains on establishing and maintaining safe, supportive campus environments across our institutions within the UL System. 'Our institutions are staffed by professionals who are expected to uphold university policies and contribute to safe and respectful campus environments. While we do not comment on individual personnel matters, we remain committed to supporting our universities as they implement established processes to address concerns and promote accountability.' Silva, who has not responded to requests for comment from USA TODAY, has never been convicted of a sex crime. He was arrested for forcible rape in 2015 but prosecutors did not move forward with the case. He has told police that the allegations against him are false. UL Lafayette and Louisiana Tech are both part of the UL System. The woman also sued LSU and the Lafayette Police Department for negligence. Federal judge Brian Jackson dismissed those claims, leaving two Title IX claims against the UL System. Title IX is the federal law banning sex discrimination in education. A different federal judge in March dismissed another lawsuit filed against the same agencies by three other women, who also alleged Silva sexually assaulted them. Although the woman could have pursued her negligence claim against LSU in state court, the settlement now precludes her from doing so. Court records do not reveal the dollar amount the UL System agreed to pay her, and her attorneys declined to provide it. However, an affidavit her attorney filed shows the woman reduced her demand to less than one-third of her prior ask the day before the settlement was reached. 'We are pleased this case was resolved to our client's satisfaction,' said Monica Beck and Jeff Green, the attorneys representing Doe, in an emailed statement. 'We are honored to have represented Ms. Doe and are committed to fighting for survivors in what often seems like a very steep uphill battle.' Missed opportunities Over his six years in college, at least six women at three universities had reported Silva for alleged sexual offenses to four police agencies across three parishes. He had been banned from LSU's campus, arrested but not prosecuted, and placed on probation by UL Lafayette. But Silva never missed a semester of classes. In depositions taken as part of the lawsuit, numerous campus officials admitted that they had never even heard of the law intended to prevent that exact situation, court records citing their deposition testimony show. UL Lafayette student conduct director Carl Tapo testified that he did not know that the university and its campus police department had entered into a memorandum of understanding – required under Act 172 – with the Lafayette Police Department to share information about student sex crimes. He said he never communicated with any police officials about any alleged sex crimes involving students. Tapo also said he had been unaware of a statewide Louisiana Board of Regents policy – adopted in response to the same state law – that required universities to inform each other if a student attempts to transfer to another university in the state after being disciplined for a sexual offense. Multiple officials at Louisiana Tech University, including assistant vice president Dickie Crawford and student conduct director Adam Collins, also said they had never heard of Act 172, court records citing their deposition testimony show. Title IX coordinator Carrie Flournoy said she could not recall any steps she had taken to ensure the university complied with its requirements. Those officials each missed multiple opportunities to stop Silva before he allegedly raped Doe in September 2018. Tapo received two concerning emails about Silva – then a UL Lafayette student – in April 2015, court records show. The emails said that Silva had been arrested on an active fugitive warrant, charged with forcibly raping a student on LSU's campus. Tapo did not recall asking the campus police department for a copy of the police report, according to court records citing his deposition testimony. Nor did he ask the LSU administrator for any additional information about Silva. When Tapo met with Silva nearly three months later, he did not ask Silva any questions about the alleged rape, nor about his disciplinary or criminal troubles at LSU, the records show. Instead, Tapo placed Silva on disciplinary probation for two years and ordered him to attend one behavior management session with the school counseling office. From 2016 to 2018, Lafayette Police Department and UL Lafayette police received seven reports about Silva. Among them, he was accused of blackmailing a woman with a sex tape he recorded without her knowledge, sexually assaulting a student he met through a UL Lafayette tutoring program, and sexually assaulting two girls when he was 14 years old. Some of those offenses, if investigated and substantiated by the university, could have gotten Silva suspended or expelled. Yet UL Lafayette took no additional disciplinary action against Silva. Tapo testified that he did not recall asking any campus or police officials to keep an eye out for Silva or inform him of any reports involving Silva. Nor did he recall asking anyone at the university to notify him if Silva attempted to transfer to another college, according to court records citing his deposition. Jane Doe and Louisiana Tech Silva transferred to Louisiana Tech in 2018. Within his first two weeks of classes at Louisiana Tech, court records show Silva met a female student later known as Jane Doe through a dating app. After studying together twice, Silva invited her to his apartment, where they drank heavily with his friends and roommates. Text messages show Doe texted Silva, "I'm incredibly drunk," before passing out clothed on his bed. The woman said she woke up multiple times throughout the night to Silva groping and sexually assaulting her, despite her repeatedly telling him "no." She reported the incident to Flournoy that December after seeing a tweet by a UL Lafayette student that identified Silva as an accused serial rapist. Without requesting legal advice, Flournoy concluded that Title IX did not apply because the alleged assault occurred off campus and did not involve a student group – despite federal guidance saying otherwise. The next day, then-Louisiana Tech President Les Guice received an email from a student voicing concerns about Silva. The email, citing the tweet Doe had seen, mentioned alleged rapes involving Silva at LSU, UL Lafayette and a third university. Guice responded, "I assure you that our folks are on top of this." Guice forwarded the email to Flournoy. Yet neither Guice nor Flournoy followed up with any of the three universities to try to corroborate the information. No one at Louisiana Tech investigated Doe's complaint or the allegations that Silva had sexually assaulted other people. Nor did they inform UL Lafayette – or Doe – when Silva transferred back there the following month. During her deposition, Flournoy said that the allegations that Silva had sexually assaulted numerous women made her "worried" for students' safety. "What, if anything, did you do to assuage your – or to, you know, satisfy your worry?" an attorney for Doe asked Flournoy. "Just hope and pray that he did not," Flournoy said. "I did not do anything specific." Kenny Jacoby is an investigative reporter for USA TODAY. Follow him on X @kennyjacoby and on Bluesky @ Email him at kjacoby@
Barnama
31-07-2025
- Business
- Barnama
13MP: Govt To Focus On Enhancing Public Sector Integrity, Reform
KUALA LUMPUR, July 31 (Bernama) -- The government has outlined four main strategies in the 13th Malaysia Plan (13MP) with a special focus on strengthening integrity and accountability among civil servants, aimed at shaping a more dynamic, progressive and pragmatic public sector. According to the 13MP document (2026–2030) released by the Ministry of Economy today, the performance monitoring and evaluation mechanisms for all ministries will be improved through the introduction of specific key performance indicators aligned with selected macro-economic indicators. 'To support this initiative, a mechanism will be developed to allow direct performance reporting by ministries to the Prime Minister, while a national results dashboard accessible to the public will also be introduced,' the document states. In addition to integrity and accountability, the other three key government strategies are legal and institutional reform, speeding up the rationalisation of functions and roles of ministries and agencies, and enhancing human resource development in the public sector. For the second strategy, the document highlights that legal and institutional reform will include efforts to accelerate the separation of powers between the Attorney General and Public Prosecutor. "Efforts will also be made to harmonise various laws and regulations to improve government service delivery at all levels. Focus will be given to reviewing legislation to ensure harmonisation of jurisdiction between the Syariah and Civil Courts. "A study will also be conducted to assess the need for enacting a remuneration act for Syariah judges and the establishment of a special judicial appointment commission for Syariah courts to elevate their stature and independence,' the document states. In addition, the Town and Country Planning Act 1976 (Act 172) will be extended to Sabah and Sarawak to harmonise national spatial planning, including physical, social, economic and environmental sustainability development. The third strategy involves the rationalisation of the functions of government ministries and agencies to reduce duplication and resource wastage, including expanding the consolidation of Malaysia's overseas missions and agency representative offices.
Malaysia Sun
03-06-2025
- Business
- Malaysia Sun
Can ASEAN build a sustainable data centre future? Malaysian legal lessons may offer a wake-up call
Southeast Asia is embracing a digital revolution. With the meteoric rise of artificial intelligence, e-commerce, and cloud computing, the region is now home to some of the most ambitious data centre developments in the world. But while digital technology is transforming Southeast Asia's economy, ASEAN's legal and regulatory systems remain stuck in the pre-digital era. This raises a critical question: Can ASEAN truly build a sustainable, resilient data centre industry without modernising its laws? Malaysia offers a vivid case in point. In 2024, Malaysia attracted more than US$23.3 billion in data centre investments from Microsoft, Google, and Amazon Web Services. These investments are seen as driving Malaysia's modern digital economy. This new development is set to place Malaysia firmly in place as Southeast Asia's tech hub. However, while the infrastructure may be cutting-edge, the laws behind it are far from ready. Here where the problems lie: 1. Malaysia's National Land Code (Revised 2020)-which governs zoning, land use planning, land administration and registration, was drafted in a time when the concept of data centres didn't even exist - The law gives state and land authorities greater power than the planning authority over conditions and restrictions. 2. The Town and Country Planning Act 1976 (Act 172) gives local planning authorities wide control, even over the technical professional agencies such as the Department of Environment, Department of Public Works, Department of Irrigation and Drainage and Department of Mineral and Geoscience creating approval bottlenecks and confusion for developers. Bypassing the process can result in fines or demolition. This law needs a revision to better reflect today's planning priorities and public needs. Today, investors may encounter regulatory challenges in Johor, as evidenced by the state's recent rejection of nearly 30% of data centre applications to conserve water and electricity. 3. Environmental Impact Assessments (EIA), as required under the Environmental Quality Act 1974 (Act 127), are critical for large-scale developments, including data centres which have potential environmental impact. While enforcement is generally consistent, challenges can arise in ensuring compliance across all projects due to weak oversight and different standards or interpretations from one state to another in Malaysia. 4. Data centres must also meet 1974 and 1984 rules on street, drainage, building and fire safety to be sustainable and operationally safe. Ongoing commitments to modernise these regulations cater to the evolving needs of contemporary infrastructure, public needs and national aspirations. 5. The Planning Guidelines for Data Centres introduced in 2024 to address the environmental shortcomings, provide clearer direction on land use, energy, and water requirements- but they remain advisory and are not legally binding. Worse still, it cannot overcome the country's dual governance structure, where federal and state authorities often work in silos-especially on administrative matters-due to how powers are divided under the Federal Constitution. The conflicting legal environment has caused uncertainty for investors, bottlenecks for regulators and developers, and extra economic costs. For the public, this can mean slower progress in building digital infrastructure, which affects internet speed, access to services, and job opportunities in the tech industry. Other ASEAN countries face similar problems. Indonesia, Thailand, and the Philippines struggle with fragmented regulations, outdated zoning laws, and weak environmental oversight. This concern is highlighted in the ASEAN Digital Masterplan 2025, which warns that without legal and regulatory reform, ASEAN could fall behind in the global digital race. Similarly, the ASEAN Economic Community Blueprint 2025 calls for predictable, transparent, and harmonised regulations to attract infrastructure investments. Yet progress has been glacial. The ASEAN Smart Cities Framework also calls for more sustainable digital infrastructure. It urges member states to break down bureaucratic silos by adopting cross-sector governance models. The ASEAN Environmental Rights Framework is starting to promote environmental fairness in infrastructure planning-including data centres. But these regional policies will only work if member states are fully committed to enforcing them. Without this, they remain aspirational rather than actionable. Singapore has enforced sustainability through its Code for Environmental Sustainability of Buildings, adapting cooling systems to tropical climates. Meanwhile, Abu Dhabi uses the Estidama Pearl Rating System, ensuring high energy and water efficiency in all large-scale developments. These examples show that sustainable data centres are possible-but only with clear rules, strong enforcement, and cooperation across all levels of government. So, what can ASEAN do? First, ASEAN should align its laws on land administration, planning, environment, and construction to make it easier for data systems to connect across borders and attract international investment. This would help ASEAN move closer to the goals set in the ASEAN Digital Masterplan 2025 and the ASEAN Economic Community Blueprint. Second, countries like Malaysia and Indonesia need better coordination between federal/central, state and local governments to accelerate land approvals and give investors more clarity. Third, ASEAN could create shared sustainability standards for data centres, linking them to its land use planning and environmental rights goals and aligning them with global ESG benchmarks. Data centres are fast becoming the beating heart of ASEAN's digital economy. But this heart cannot be supported by legal frameworks that belong to a bygone era. If ASEAN wants a truly sustainable digital future, it needs laws that balance growth, environmental concerns, and public interests. If ASEAN learns from Malaysia's experience, it could become a global model for smart, sustainable digital infrastructure. But ignoring these lessons could lead to long-term costs-for its people, investors, and the environment.
The Star
06-05-2025
- Business
- The Star
‘Clear mechanisms and phased rollout key to URA's success'
PETALING JAYA: Clear mechanisms, combined with phased implementation, will be key to ensuring the success of the proposed Urban Renewal Act (URA), which is set to be tabled later this year, says the Malaysian Institute of Planners (MIP). The institute said the government must clarify the dispute resolution mechanisms available to help facilitate agreements among property owners. This, it said, would protect the rights of property owners concerned about redevelopment, while also safeguarding overall community well-being in affected areas and helping to reduce delays in resolving such conflicts. MIP also recommended that the URA be implemented in phases, allowing for adjustments based on real-world challenges or lessons learned from earlier stages. 'Combining this with a data-driven approach in policymaking would ensure positive outcomes for all stakeholders while achieving its goal of revitalising ageing, dilapidated urban areas. 'Impact assessment studies on the Act's possible effects on social, heritage, and environmental aspects must also be conducted to ensure the urban renewal process is holistic and sustainable,' it said in a press release yesterday. MIP further suggested that urban renewal and redevelopment zones be identified within local plans and special area plans under the Town and Country Planning Act 1976 (Act 172). It said this would enable better coordinated implementation by local authorities through additional statutory recognition and encourage greater stakeholder involvement. 'Continued and inclusive engagement with stakeholders must also take place, particularly regarding land use policies and legal matters, to build public confidence in the framework,' it added.
The Star
05-05-2025
- Business
- The Star
Ensure urban renewal process is holistic and sustainable, says MIP
PETALING JAYA: Clear mechanisms combined with a phased implementation will be key to ensure the proposed Urban Renewal Act's (URA) success, says the Malaysian Institute of Planners (MIP). The institute said the government must give priority to clarifying the dispute resolution mechanisms available to facilitate agreements among property owners. "This would ensure the rights of property owners who may have concerns about redevelopment while protecting overall community wellbeing in affected areas. "In addition, measures should be put in place to address and reduce existing delays in resolving such conflicts," MIP said in a press statement on Monday (May 5). It said that URA should be implemented in phases, allowing for adjustments to be made in light of any sudden real-world challenges or lessons learned from initial phases. 'Combining this with a data-driven approach in policymaking would ensure positive outcomes for all stakeholders while achieving its goal of revitalising ageing, dilapidated urban areas. 'Impact assessment studies on social, heritage and environmental effects must also be done first to ensure the urban renewal process is both holistic and sustainable,' it added. MIP also suggested that the identification of urban renewal and redevelopment areas be included in the local plans and special area plans under the provisions of the Town and Country Planning Act 1976 (Act 172). "This would allow for a better coordinated implementation by relevant local authorities through additional statutory recognition and promote more stakeholder engagement. "Continued and inclusive engagement with stakeholders must also be done, particularly on matters related to land use policies and legal, to strengthen public confidence in the framework. "With structured dialogues and transparent decision-making processes, it will contribute to a more successful and widely supported urban renewal initiative,' it said. According to the draft Bill, the URA aims to enhance the efficiency of urban planning, particularly in addressing the risk of urban dilapidation and deterioration, as well as maintaining a balanced urban environment. The Bill is expected to be tabled sometime this year.
