The parents of a University of California (UC) Berkley alum are filing a lawsuit against the school for not reporting domestic abuse that took place on university property, reported the Daily Californian.
On May 18, 2012, Jose Lumbreras, 25, was driving while intoxicated and killed his two passengers in a crash. The passengers were Milanca Lopez, UC Berkley alumna, and her six-year-old son, Xavier Chavez.
Last month, he pleaded guilty to two counts of gross vehicular manslaughter to avoid a trial.
Lopez's family has filed a lawsuit against the UC Board of Regents and UC Berkley for negligence, negligent supervision and premises liability. The lawsuit states that instances of domestic violence occurred in Lopez's home in University Village.
According to the lawsuit, Lopez complained to University Village family housing coordinator Cephas John about the on-going abuse in her home and about verbal abuse that occurred in front of UC Berkley students. John did not report these complaints to the police, the lawsuit states.
"Generically speaking, there are no specific UC policies, or laws for that matter, governing what employees must do if they hear about allegations of unlawful behavior," said UC Berkeley spokesperson Dan Mogulof.
The university is currently examining the lawsuit and will seek representation outside of the school, as is their common practice in personal injury cases.
"If there is a crime, then there is an obligation to report it," Mogulof said. "We all accept shared responsibilities as citizens at the very least."
The lawsuit also named Lumbreras as a defendant, but his attorney Paul Wolf denied the allegations of abuse.
"(Lumbreras) absolutely denies that he abused Milanca or Xavier in any way," Wolf said. "It is tragic, and it is false."
Lopez's family's attorney, Joel Siegal said the lawsuit, which he co-authored, is a Title IX case.
"This (lawsuit) is about having a campus free of harassment," Siegal said. "This is about feminism, and this is about women being safe on campus."
