MSU Sued For Failing to Protect Women From Sexual Assaults

Four students from Michigan State University who claim that they were sexually assaulted by other students filed a federal lawsuit against the school Wednesday, claiming it failed to protect them from sexual harassment and assault, which is a violation of federal law.

The lawsuit claims that MSU's failure to act in a timely manner "amounted to unlawful sexual harassment and discrimination based on gender". The lawsuit was filed Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Grand Rapids.

The women say MSU drug out the investigation process and did not safeguard them from having contact with their alleged assailants while on campus.

Two of the students filing the lawsuit are named, the other two are listed as Jane Doe 1 and Jane Doe 2.

Wednesday's filing comes shortly after the release of a report from the Department of Education's Office of Civil Rights in September that claims that MSU failed to comply with several requirements under Title IX, the civil rights law that prohibits sex discrimination in federally-funded schools.

The federal government concluded that MSU's failure to address complaints of sexual harassment or assault in a timely manner contributed to a "sexually hostile environment."