EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) – The New Mexico Department of Justice (NMDOJ) released a 70-page report on their investigation into how NMSU handled hazing and sexual assault incidents involving the men’s basketball program during the 2022-2023 season.
The report found that student safety programs in place failed to protect student-athletes, and that there was a “toxic culture” pervasive throughout the program that helped foment the misconduct.
“This report is intended to shine a light not only on the specific misconduct by members of NMSU’s basketball team but also the institutional deficiencies that allowed that misconduct to go unaddressed by leaders inside the university,” New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez said in a press release. “While NMSU has made commendable progress since these incidents occurred, more must be done to ensure accountability and prevent future harm.”
NMSU offered the following statement in response to the release of the report.
“We have received the attorney general’s report and are currently in the process of reviewing it in detail. We are pleased that the attorney general acknowledged the work we have done to enhance training and put safeguards in place to help ensure a situation like this never happens again. The report also notes areas for additional improvement and provides recommendations for measures to further protect and support our students. We are committed to giving the detailed report and its recommendations careful review and consideration, and we look forward to continuing the collaborative effort to ensure the safety and well-being of our students.”
The NMDOJ’s investigation was launched in response to incidents during that season where three former NMSU men’s basketball players – Kim Aiken Jr., Doctor Bradley, and Deshawndre Washington – were charged with multiple felony sex crimes targeting at least four teammates and two student managers.
The charges against Aiken Jr. and Bradley have since been dropped after they accepted a plea deal.
Meanwhile, Washington awaits his trial scheduled for February next year.
The report laid out several findings including “a toxic locker room culture, an absence of oversight by key Athletic Department personnel, and a systemic lack of priority given to hazing prevention measures.”
Three key findings are highlighted below:
The assaults occurred in an environment characterized by a toxic culture that permeated the basketball program.
Opportunities to observe and intervene were missed by those close to the team.
Institutional safeguards were insufficient to prevent or address misconduct.
The NMDOJ’s report concluded that there are seven total critical areas of concern for NMSU:
Institutional governance and student engagement
Policies
Reporting
Training
Athletics department culture and recruiting
Resources for sexual assault victims
Coordination between university components
From their findings, NMDOJ made an extensive list of 35 recommendations for NMSU to improve campus safety and to help prevent future incidents from happening again.
Six of those recommendations were listed as “high priority:”
1. Enhanced coordination: Develop written guidelines for collaboration between the Athletic Department, Office of Institutional Equity, and Dean of Students.
2. Mandatory training: Institute recurring Title IX and anti-hazing training for all students and staff.
3. Consistent discipline: Enforce proportional disciplinary measures for student-athletes based on the severity of misconduct.
4. Recruiting scrutiny: Strengthen standards for recruiting practices and coach/player vetting.
5. Leadership commitment: Ensure senior leadership prioritizes and adequately funds safety initiatives and programming.
6. Resource center creation: Establish a center dedicated to sexual violence education, prevention, and victim advocacy.
Former NMSU men’s basketball Head Coach Greg Heiar, who led the team at the time, and his staff were subsequently fired after the hazing allegations came to light, and the program was shut down for the remainder of the season.
“The lack of oversight was very apparent as it relates to Greg Heiar and his staff. There were multiple instances of individual student-athletes that raised issues with coaches that weren’t affirmatively addressed, and then there were systems that simply weren’t in place,” Sean Sullivan, a special counsel with the NMDOJ said.
Sullivan said student athletes at the time really didn’t know who made up the senior leadership in NMSU’s Athletic Department that they could go to and make the reports.
Since the incidents, Sullivan noted that NMSU has made progress while there is more work to be done.
“In the aftermath of these events, there has been some transition into senior leadership taking a more active role, being present, identifying who they are, holding themselves out as individuals who reports can be made. That was not the case in 2022-23. I think they are moving in that direction. But I think it’s pretty clear that there’s still more work to be done on that front,” Sullivan said.
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