", That night, the seventh-floor roommate who had ignored Hughes' Facebook messages reached out to Isaiah Smith, asking him whether he knew anything about what had happened to their teammates. The University of Rochester settled a long-running legal case over alleged sexual harassment within its brain and cognitive sciences program for $9.4million, parties announced Friday. That is rare. Listen to this special OTL for E:60 podcast, where Ryan Smith talks to correspondent, Tisha Thompson, and producer, Andy Lockett about their harrowing story from 22 Harvest Street. The lawsuit further claims, "Lees coordinated with Bronson and Burnham to sign Smith's bond once Bronson and Burnham raised the money.". The story of the Cowboys scout and prospect son Dallas just drafted, Kidnapped and tortured: One college football player's unbelievable story, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. "They put a titanium rod through my femur, attaching it with screws in my knee and hip. I am fortunate to have experienced such an outstanding university that put the students needs and priorities for success before all else.. When the dealers attempted to retaliate, they allegedly assumed Ewo, who was out of town and unaware of the incident, and Kollias were part of it. He had learned that his cousin had been attacked with a hammer in a drug deal that went bad. Prosecutors allowed Outside the Lines to review sections of a recording from an officer's body camera. There was so much. ", Lees told Kyle that he "should be looking for Dan Bronson and Kenyon 'KJ' Burnham -- two of Smith's friends and teammates on U of R's football team -- inside the Hall of Justice," because "Bronson and Burnham raised nearly $1,500 for Smith's bond but needed an adult over the age of 21 to sign the bond," according to Kyle's complaint. The official Football Coach List for the University of Rochester Yellowjackets The official Football Coach List for the University of Rochester Yellowjackets Football Coaches - University of Rochester Athletics Skip To Main Content Pause All Rotators Skip To Main Content University of Rochester Athletics The officers quickly arrested at least two people who were watching over the football players. "But they said, 'We don't want money; we want blood.'". ROCHESTER, N.Y. A renowned University of Rochester professor who has worked here for a decade has been accused in a federal complaint of having sexualrelationships and using illegal drugs with students; making inappropriate, humiliating or condescending comments to and about female students and faculty; and pressuring them to meet with him alone. What becomes of his career going forward is unclear. University police sent out a statewide alert over the weekend that seniors Ani Okeke Ewo, of Aurora, Ill., and Nicholas Kollias, of Northbrook, Ill., had been missing since 2 a.m. Saturday. 4:40. July 14:Women of color in STEM face greater risks of gender harassment July 3:Fox Sports boss Jamie Horowitz is out amid sexual harassment inquiry, In his email Friday,Jaeger addressed his continued commitment to his students:"I will try my best to continue to support my students/post-docs research and careers, and to help them navigate the uncertainties of the current situation. "Until finally, towards the end, we started getting some details which led us to 22 Harvest Street.". They surgically removed glass from my eardrum and scalp and skull.". In the video, Rivera is holding a sawed-off .22-caliber rifle and standing over Kollias' teammate lying facedown in a pool of blood on the bathroom floor. When Smith was arrested in 2015, Bronson was the team's quarterback and all three players were sophomores. Professors are advising students not to pursue educational or employment opportunities at U of R. Woman with inherited eye disease first NY patient to get eye implant in Rochester. Soon after, he says, "This is what n---as going to do when they wanna take 4 pounds from a n---a. His lawsuit seeks unspecified damages for "reputational harm (and) emotional distress"allegedly caused by the school. An assistant University of Rochester football coach who lost his job after the kidnapping and torture of two players is suing the school for comments that a university spokeswoman made to Outside the Lines for an investigation that detailed the harrowing story. After parking, four young men got out of the car. His femur was shattered; he'd felt it explode after they shot him there when he tried to run. University of Rochester undertakes 50 or 60 investigations each year of employees accused of discrimination and harassment. Kyle does not dispute that he signed the bond for Smith's release. 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Speaking on the condition of anonymity because he had committed a crime by purchasing the drugs, the former player says Smith told him "he had connections in New York City" and could "get whatever I needed. Meredith Hastings, an associate professor at Brown University,has concerns about the effect on students considering reporting sexual harassment and assault. "That's what really helps me cope with the negative energy, along with playing the piano. The girls led the two football players through a side door. (); : In recordings obtained by Outside the Lines, Kollias asks a Charles Schwab customer service agent to help him transfer money to his checking account. In a series of text messages, the teammate and a woman named Samantha Hughes agreed to meet up around 1 a.m. Hughes had reached out earlier that week on Facebook, when she tried to "friend" both of the football players living in the seventh-floor apartment. Detectives said the investigation is ongoing. Prosecutors say as many as nine people came and went from the house that weekend, some to drink and watch football, others to buy drugs. Burnham is a senior offensive lineman; Bronson is a senior wide receiver. ); : Kyle, head coach Scott Greene and university President Joel Seligman all declined repeated requests for an interview. In his lawsuit, Kyle alleges that at least three others from the football team were involved in Smith's release. During Lydell Strickland's trial in December 2016, prosecutors described him as the "ringleader" and "mastermind" of the plot. "The one thing that stood out to me is the almost blank stare they both had on their faces," Ciminelli said. football players who were kidnapped and tortured. He wasn't related to any of the men injured in the hammer attack but helped Rivera plan the retaliation. "I heard stories that he knew how to work his way over on people. ", Kollias remembers grabbing his teammate's hand and holding it. While Burnham did not respond to repeated requests for comment, Bronson did tell Outside the Lines, "I have been advised to make no comment as it regards to a pending legal proceeding; other than to state that neither K.J. "I didn't think I was going to make it," Nicholas Kollias said. "There's no doubt the absolute intent was, once they got the money from that account, these kids would have been killed," Ciminelli says. Pretending he was also a victim, Smith, who was uninjured, went with the wounded men to the hospital. It was not known how many involve graduate students. Smith hadreportedly lured four people he knew to be marijuana dealers to Ewo's apartment when he robbedthem and beat them up with help from three accomplices. As the judge sentenced Smith to 13 years in prison, he said, "This is all your fault. "And that's exactly what I did. ", In an email, Kyle's attorney, Brendan Reyes, clarified that "it was Mr. Kyle's belief and understanding that the players had arranged to pay the bail bondsman and that one of the coaches would sign the bond. The football season was over, and Smith was back on campus by the time classes resumed. But prosecutors say the campus officers did not immediately connect Smith's drug heist to the missing men. View the calendar for the University of Rochester Yellowjackets. The cameras showed Smith meeting up with three men near the apartment building. #GoJackets #d3fb. ", Listen to this special OTL for E:60 podcast. The students were subsequently found. Instead, the three men Smith had waved at came crashing through the apartment door, according to police reports, spraying the drug suppliers with pepper spray and hitting them in the head with a hammer before taking off with the 4 pounds of marijuana. Hosted by Sabrina Tavernise. He laughed when a judge sentenced him to 155 years in prison. They surgically removed glass from my eardrum and scalp and skull." The ESPNspecial said Kyle signed a $15,000 bond "to bail Smith out of jail." All rights reserved (About Us). "I just remember the first thing that I smelled was urine and feces, and it was totally disgusting," Kollias says. "I was pretty much fine with dying at that point.". Brady Prieskorn, 4-star TE from Rochester Adams, picks Michigan football for 2024. "The issue is society wide. "The entire house had shaken, and there was this huge flash of light," Kollias says. The Official Page for the University of Rochester Football Program Cantlon, one of the complainants to come forward with Kidd, is Ferrigno's adviser. From ultimate to tai chi, quidditch to alpine skiing, we offer a range of sports and activities that feature healthy competition in a more casual environment. This could have turned out in a very different way," University of Rochester President Joel Seligan said. He played college ball at Michigan State, earning team MVP twice, before he was selected in the sixth round of the 1996 NFL Draft by Carolina. And I didn't know how much longer I could go," Kollias says. ET Sunday on ESPN.Rochester Police Department, When Nicholas Kollias arrived on campus three years earlier, in 2012, he had two great passions: piano and football. University of Rochester football coachScott Greene has announced that the 2017 season will be his final year as the team's head coach. ", Faculty Senate meetings are closed to the public. We have 23 varsity teams that compete in both the Liberty League and University Athletic Association at the NCAA Division III level. While Kollias and his friends were left wondering, about 5 miles away, 19-year-old Elliot Rivera began to make plans. In the room during that faculty meeting were at least two of Jaeger's alleged victims, CelesteKidd and Jessica Cantlon. Both were arrested in the following days. In 2017, 9 faculty and students filed a sexual-harassment and retaliation suit against the University of Rochester. The University of Rochester fit both perfectly. That same day, Kollias says the masked men put a gun to his head and demanded he call his bank. According to documents obtained by Outside the Lines, Rochester assistant football coach Dan Kyle signed a $15,000 bond to bail Smith out. Three of the four men in the cellphone video recording of the torture, including Elliot Rivera, also pleaded guilty and were sentenced to 35 years in prison. The two assistant coaches, according to Kyle, agreed that "Lees could go back to campus, as the coaches were responsible for opening the weight room for the players at 4:15 P.M." Lees drove back to the campus. Robby Klein for ESPN. "I was pushing myself through to not give up and not close my eyes because I didn't want to die. Kollias considered one of the football players living in the apartment to be one of his closest friends on the team, close enough for that teammate to confide to Kollias that the "incident" occurred in his apartment but that "he didn't know exactly what happened." Kollias appeared in an ESPN "E:60" special this summer to talk about the incident, which led to six people being charged with a total of 84 counts, including kidnapping, gang assault, firearms charges, robbery and sexual assault. April 28, 2023. "Celeste is so accomplished and so young, and she does a lot of what I want to do. But she did provide written responses to several questions, including the statement about Kyle acting alone when he bailed Smith out of jail. "I wasnt looking to leave. Kidd alleged sexual harassment from Jaeger, her superior for years, that she said continued because of the substantial power differential that existed between them, according to the federal complaint filed Aug. 30. The surveillance cameras show some of the hammer victims walking out of the building using their shirts to stanch the bleeding from their heads. They found Kollias and his teammate in the bedroom, untied but badly injured. E:60 showcases the best in longform television journalism. "The department is broken, and the question of how it is revitalized is of urgent consequence," Seligman said. It was small money, but he was one of the best football players on the team, and he could definitely be intimidating. Auburn partners with St. Joe's and University of Rochester Medical Center. To help sell the ruse, the three attackers -- who have never been identified -- struck Smith, too, but only lightly, never hitting him with the hammer. "If as a victim you're going to be victimized by the public, why would you?" Both Hughes and Gigliotti said Strickland took Rivera's plan for revenge beyond their expectations. Three months later, in March, Isaiah Smith faced a judge for his role in orchestrating the drug robbery that started it all. Brad Beckwith 5 tackles, 2 sacks and 2 BU. Aug. 15:Country music biz has mistreated women for decades Aug. 14:One-fifth of Americans find workplace hostile or threatening. "My life was more important than any amount of money," Kollias now says. Would just take people's money and not give them anything back. There are two students with the same names listed on the University of Rochester Yellowjackets football page. ", "I had three or four blood transfusions," Kollias says. University leaders believe keeping that together is important. Someday we might have, but that day came earlier than expected.". Kidnapping and assault charges are expected. The plaintiffs are committing a portion of the settlement to individuals whose careers were negatively affected by the hostile environment described in the lawsuit.. ", Hughes, it turns out, was the girlfriend of Rivera, the man who had promised revenge. Off the field, though, Kollias avoided Smith. Other officers also found the rifle, hidden in the attic. I'll just call back on Monday." Smith had already left school soon after his arrest, though the university will not say whether he withdrew or was expelled. "And that's when I started getting nervous." Jaeger sent the Rochester Democrat and Chronicleemail Friday afternoon in response to several inquiries: University of Rochester officials found the initial harassment claims without merit. "He's like, 'Let's go. The willingness of our insurance carrier to pay the entire settlement amount was a factor in our decision. He got nothing to do with this; he started running.". "They started shooting everywhere and putting the gun into our mouths and up to my skin and just shooting and pulling away at the last second. Around 2 p.m. that Monday, the complaint alleges, Lees hung up the phone and informed Kyle "he was going downtown to bail Smith out of jail. At one point, Seligman addressed them directly. Detectives told Ciminelli about Smith's communications in the very early hours of Sunday morning. Faculty and students with backgrounds not only in cognitive science and psychologybut also neuroscience were recruited. When Kollias returned to campus after Thanksgiving, he had no idea Smith had been arrested. Both players had reputations for quickly responding to text messages and phone calls. Strickland particularly frightened them. ROCHESTER, N.Y. -- Two University of Rochester football players from Illinois were rescued after they were kidnapped and held hostage in New York, police said. He also ordered anyone related to either crime to be pulled in for questioning, including Smith, Hughes and Gigliotti. Rivera had actually tapped out many of the text messages sent from Hughes' phone to Kollias' teammate, luring him into the meetup. "I noticed that the neighborhood started getting kind of bad," he says. At the height of its success, the University of Rochester Brain and Cognitive Sciences department was regarded as one of the top sites in the country. Once inside, he found blood on the walls and his furniture in disarray. Mr. Kyle does not have any specific knowledge that the two players raised the money and, therefore, has no reason to doubt Mr. Bronson's statement.". Brain and Cognitive Professor Florian Jaeger will return back to the classroom later this year. Police Chief Michael Ciminelli, a Rochester native with 12 years of experience with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, says he believes not being able to transfer money on the weekend might have saved Kollias' life. "He called us b----es," Hughes testified, adding that she became "scared of people that I loved getting in trouble, and I was scared for the safety of my family and myself. He had previously lived for a brief time in the house, but now it was inhabited by a few of his friends. Sept. 12:SoFi CEO to leave immediately after sexual harassment claims Sept. 12:How Brie Larson tackles subtle sexual harassment in 'Unicorn Store'. The investigation also spotlighted police evidence photos and cell phone video showing how Kollias was shot and, along with a second teammate, tortured with a rifle, rebar, a plunger, a clothing iron and other household implements four days after Smith was bailed out of jail. "I'm in very bad shape at this point. By this time, Rivera had bailed, leaving his friend who lived in the house to watch over the captives. According to the police report, when the officer started questioning Smith, his story unraveled quickly. Campus police reached out to Hughes, asking to meet up with her and ask her a few questions. Instead, a university spokeswoman emailed a statement. ", Gigliotti put it more simply: "When you are high and drunk, you really don't care." A SWAT team rescued the students just before 9:30 p.m. Sunday. Mr. Kyle did not pay any money, from any source, to secure Isaiah Smith's bond. View the calendar for the University of Rochester Yellowjackets. The first image on the video is a thin man in a red sweatshirt and a plastic American flag mask. The University of Rochester has been home for me and my family for the past 12 years, Greene said. Greene and Lees did not respond to multiple requests for comment. she asked. One of his favorite pieces is Beethoven's "Moonlight Sonata." The federal district court ruled it was speculative to blame Humphreys, but the appellate court found it sufficiently plausible, noting that Irrera is a graduate of one of the nations most highly regarded schools of music.". After meeting with Burnham and Bronson, Kyle "went to the jail records office to wait for Smith's release," where he "texted Lees discussing the long wait time." 1. Between 30% and 50% of those relate to sex or gender as the protected class, as opposed to race, national origin or other areas, according to the university's general counsel, Gail Norris.

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