Colorado hires lawyers who helped produce Pepper Hamilton report
Colorado has hired lawyers who helped produce the Pepper Hamilton report at Baylor to investigate the handling of an alleged domestic assault claim by a former coach's girlfriend, according to Sarah Kuta of the Daily Camera.
The university suspended former assistant coach Joe Tumpkin on Jan. 6, after the coach allegedly assaulted his then girlfriend on multiple occasions.
Then on Jan. 27, Tumpkin resigned, before being arrested on Feb. 1 and later charged with five felony counts of second-degree assault.
The unnamed woman described how she contacted head coach Mike MacIntrye on Dec. 9, because she felt she could trust him, telling MacIntrye about Tumpkin's continual abuse.
MacIntrye did not respond or contact the woman after their initial conversation, but did tell athletic director Rick George, who in turn told Chancellor Phil DeStefano.
The ex-girlfriend claims she did not hear back from MacIntrye and was instead contacted by a lawyer representing Tumpkin, who asked her if she wanted money to make the situation go away.
During this time, Tumpkin was promoted to interim defensive coordinator for the team's bowl game on Dec. 29.
The Board of Regents has now begun a probe, into whether the university violated any policies.
"We are looking at what occurred and when, if our policies were violated, or whether those policies should be modified to better explain the reporting (requirements)," Colorado Board of Regents Chair Irene Griego said on Friday.
Attorneys Leslie Gomez and Gina Maisto Smith have been hired by the university, and will investigate how DeStefano, George, and MacIntrye responded when they learned of Tumpkin's former girlfriend's allegations that she was assaulted.
The two lawyers were part of the Pepper Hamilton investigation into the wide-range sexual assault scandal that has rocked Baylor over the last year. The report resulted in the President, Athletic Director, and head football coach all being fired.
Chancellor DiStefano told The Daily Camera that he did not report the allegations against Tumpkin, because he did not believe he was required to.