“Based on what is known, one suspects that the allegations are true.”

With these 12 words regarding the alleged SAE drugging and assault case in his March 28 column, “Call me cynical,” George Henson succeeded in callously slandering a student, irresponsibly compromising the SMU judicial process and reaching a new personal low.

Henson’s suggestion that the death of Jake Stiles in the SAE house 16 months ago is relevant to this case is as illogical as it is irresponsible. It seems that in the mind of George Henson, speculation and rumors are equivalent to factual truth, provided that such speculation and rumors are consistent with his broader argument.

As a member of the Greek community, I am confident that the drug and alcohol problem at SMU is not exclusive to SAE or the fraternity and sorority system as a whole. It is not my intention to marginalize the tragic circumstances of Jake Stiles’ death, but what happened to him could very easily have occurred in another fraternity house, a dormitory or in the apartment of a student outside of the Greek system. To suggest, as Henson did, that the recently accused student is guilty because of an event which occurred over a year ago is reckless and unbecoming of a faculty member.

In America, the accused are innocent until proven guilty, and the presumption of innocence and right to a fair trial are two of the bedrocks of our judicial system. Regardless of whatever the charge may be, no SMU student deserves to have their case tried in the pages of The Daily Campus, as Henson attempted to do in his recent column. Fortunately, George Henson has managed to render himself so irrelevant in the SMU community over the years with his predictable and self-serving diatribes that his previously referenced statement probably did little harm. Unfortunately, his column ran during a time when many prospective students and parents were visiting our campus, and I hope that they were not inclined to believe that his reprehensible vitriol is indicative of the SMU faculty as a whole.

I understand that the freedom of speech is one of the most sacred freedoms that we as Americans enjoy, and I always try to respect opinions that I disagree with, but libelous comments such as the one referenced earlier by Henson are shameful and should have no place in our campus newspaper. If George Henson wanted to do the honorable thing, he would apologize to the accused student for his harmful and unnecessary statements in the same forum in which they were made. In doing so, he may be able to salvage whatever relevancy he has left with many on our campus and prove that he can put decency and responsibility ahead of his own ego and feelings of intellectual superiority. So with just a few weeks left in the school year, I would like to challenge you, Mr. Henson, to set aside your own interests and do the right thing by writing an article apologizing to the student in question for your disparaging remarks. You may not have much faith in the judicial process at SMU, but I would hope that you would have enough faith in your students to afford them the same respect that has historically been commonplace in the American criminal justice system.

Joseph Goddard is a junior political science major. He can be reached for comment at [email protected].