1. If my incident involves a violation of law, can I be prosecuted criminally AND also be referred to Judicial Affairs?

Yes. Violations of federal, state, or local laws are adjudicated in an appropriate court of law using a legal procedure run by sworn officers of the court. Violations of university policy are reviewed on campus using an administrative procedure run by appointed University officials. While a student who violates University Student Rules may have also broken federal, state, or local laws at the same time, the fundamentally different aspects of these two systems allow each of them to independently review the same conduct through their respective adjudication processes.

2.If my attorney has my case delayed in the courts, isn't the University obligated to wait and see what happens before starting their case review?

No, St. Mary's University has no obligation to wait for the outcome of a governmental prosecution before initiating its own administrative conduct review on behalf of the University community.

3. If my attorney gets my case dismissed in the courts, will St. Mary's University automatically dismiss my university conduct charges as well?

Not necessarily. The Beyond a Reasonable Doubt standard of proof used in the courts is different from the Preponderance of The Evidence standard of proof used by the University. Therefore, it is possible for the two processes to come to different conclusions about whether a student's actions violated University Rules as well as federal, state of local laws.