Two of the William Paterson University students who had sex assault charges against them dismissed last month plan to sue the university for the damage they say was done to the reputations, their lawyer said in a court notice.
Garrett Collick, of Paterson, Noah Williams, of Camden, and Collick's mother allege in the filing that the university failed to conduct a proper investigation, causing them financial and emotional damage. They are seeking unspecified damages.
A spokeswoman says the university doesn't comment on legal matters.
Michael Epstein, the lawyer for the two men and Nancy Williams, wrote in the filing that the university did not have the proper training and experience to conduct a sexual assault investigation and arrested the men without probable cause.
A Passaic County grand jury last week refused to indict Collick, Williams and three other students on charges of kidnapping and sexually assaulting a female student at a dormitory.
The five men were expelled following the allegations. They were charged with crimes including conspiracy, criminal restraint and aggravated sexual assault in the encounter that occurred a few days before Thanksgiving on the campus in Wayne.
Ron Ricci, an attorney for one of the other men, said that all five presented evidence "that this was not a sexual assault."
Local
Breaking news and the stories that matter to your neighborhood.
"It was outrageous that these young men had to go through the publicity that they had to go through," he said last week.
