Dyshawn Pierre sues university over suspension
By: Daniel Massa – Sports Editor
UPDATE: Oct. 19, 6:08 p.m.
Judge Thomas Rose today ruled against suspended Dayton basketball player Dyshawn Pierre’s temporary restraining order against the University of Dayton.
If upheld, the restraining order would have lifted Pierre’s first-semester suspension for violating the university’s code of conduct in regard to an accused sexual assault in the spring.
“Pierre has not demonstrated that he has a strong likelihood of success on the merits of his claims because he failed to ask for accommodation and because the process promised him and provided to him was fundamentally fair,” Rose said in the ruling released today. “As for the remaining factors to be considered, Pierre has not shown that refusal to issue an injunction would cause him to suffer irreparable injury.”
UPDATE: Oct. 16, 4:47 p.m.
A federal judge will decide on Dyshawn Pierre’s future as a Dayton Flyer. Pierre’s lawyer, Peter R. Ginsberg, made his case Thursday in court at the Dayton Federal Building in front of U.S. District Court Judge Thomas Rose that Pierre’s first-semester suspension from the university should be vacated. According to the Dayton Daily News, Ginsberg argued that the suspension would cause harm to Pierre’s academic and professional basketball career, and that the suspension itself was given through a faulty application of Title IX and the school’s code of conduct. Rose did not provide a timetable for when he will make his decision.
Oct. 7
Suspended senior Dayton basketball player Dyshawn Pierre is suing the University of Dayton over the school’s decision to suspend him for the fall semester after he was accused of sexual assault in the spring.
Pierre’s lawyer, Peter R. Ginsberg, released a statement Wednesday outlining Pierre’s complaint, which was filed today along with a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction, both of which will attempt to prevent the university from enforcing the suspension.
“This University’s decision, unsupported by any objective or credible evidence of any sort, flies in the face of law enforcement’s determinations about the charge of sexual assault,” the statement reads in part.
The incident allegedly occurred April 23 and was first reported to UD Public Safety May 5, according to a police report obtained by Flyer News through a public records request.
The Montgomery County Prosecutor’s Office declined to press charges against Pierre, according to the report.
“What has been done to me has been grossly unfair,” Pierre said in the lawyer’s statement. “The allegations against me are false… I want justice, and I want a return to my normal life.”
Pierre scored 12.7 points per game last season and pulled down 8.1 rebounds per game, both of which lead all returning Flyers.
“The lawsuit,” Ginsberg added, “seeks to allow Dyshawn to return immediately to the University so that he can remain on track to graduate and strive to help his basketball team obtain national success while combating the University’s unjust decision in the courts.”