May 21, 1999
Contact: Louise Dudley
 (804) 924-1400


UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA STUDENT DISCIPLINE CASE REFERRED TO HEARING PANEL

	A pending student discipline case involving three accused
University of Virginia students has been referred to a fact-finding
panel appointed by Vice President for Student Affairs William W. Harmon.
	The four-member panel -- two administrators, a student, and a
faculty member -- has been asked to hear both sides of the case,
consider the evidence and, if guilt is determined, recommend appropriate
sanctions, Harmon said.
	Charges that U.Va.'s standards of conduct have been violated are
normally heard by the student-run University Judiciary Committee (UJC).
	"The UJC constitution allows us to refer disciplinary cases to
the vice president if more cases are pending than we can handle
effectively," said committee chair Brian Hudak, a rising fourth-year
student.
	"During the summer the committee does not operate at full
strength.  Because cases would be delayed until the fall semester if our
power to refer them is not used, the committee typically refers a number
of cases to the vice president each spring," Hudak said.
	The panelŐs decision may be appealed to the UniversityŐs
Judicial Review Board, a separate body of students, faculty, and
administrators, Harmon said.
	Harmon and Hudak said they would not comment further to protect
the studentsŐ right to privacy and the confidentiality of the
process. They emphasized that a decision will be made on the evidence
presented by both sides.

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