SMU files motion to dismiss lawsuit over alleged 2019 rape on campus

DALLAS - SMU filed a motion to dismiss a lawsuit involving an alleged rape on campus.

The accuser, identified in court documents as Jane Doe, says she was raped in her dorm room by an unidentified SMU football player in 2019.

Her lawsuit accuses SMU of failing to follow proper procedure under Title IX - a civil rights law designed to protect against sexual discrimination and harassment on college campuses.

SMU denies the allegations and says there is no evidence of “deliberate indifference to the plaintiff's claims” -- which is one of the standards for proving Title IX violations.

The judge has ordered both parties to hold a conference and update him in two weeks.