IU releases review of April’s campus protest activity and enforcement

Almost three months after police arrested 57 protesters at a pro-Palestine encampment at Indiana University-Bloomington, a new independent review released Thursday found the university’s inconsistent enforcement of its own policies created “confusion and frustration” and made governing the campus difficult.

In a 77-page report, law firm Cooley LLP presented new findings about the events leading up to and following these arrests, IU’s campus climate and its administration’s response.

In a press release, Rebekah Donaleski, a lead investigator for Cooley LLP, said the recommendations will help the university and its community move forward.

“We found that the university’s actions were driven by a focus on campus safety and free speech in a challenging and rapidly evolving situation,” Donaleski said.

According to an IU press release, Cooley LLP had “unrestricted access” to IU during its investigation and interviewed campus representatives—including administrators, students, faculty and IUPD officers—along with the Monroe County prosecutor and ISP officers. The law firm also reviewed more than 10,000 internal documents and emails and 100 hours of video footage related to the events.

“However, doing so the night before the planned encampment caused a number of unintended negative consequences,” the report continues.

The report also states that IU asked protestors to remove the structures and continue the protest without them, but some protestors refused.

“Ultimately, using the Indiana State Police’s assistance was the safest option available to remove the encampment,” the report said.

Additionally, Cooley LLP found IUPD’s understaffing caused “a myriad of negative effects.”

Recommendations

The law firm presented eight recommendations for the university.

The first recommendation was to approve a new expressive activity policy before the start of the fall semester, which kicks off Aug. 26.

IU administration shared a draft of a new expressive policy with students and faculty in late June. The policy regulates and protects most forms of protest—such as assemblies and carrying signs—but explicitly does not allow overnight encampments.

It also would allow university or law enforcement officials to enforce the policy. Some campus stakeholders—including leadership for the IU Student Government and the Bloomington chapter of the American Association of University Professors—have criticized the policy for vague language and a lack of student and faculty involvement in decision making, among other concerns.

Cooley LLP also proposed the following recommendations:

• The IU President should review potential inconsistencies within the policies and make recommendations to the Board of Trustees to address these gaps
• The university should increase funding to IUPD to hire and retain more officers, as well as “bolster existing training and technological capacity.”
• IU should use campus-wide communication to alert the community of “encampments or other large-scale or disruptive protests.”IU should improve its communication with “critical constituencies on campus.”

The IU Board of Trustees convene for a special meeting at 1 p.m. Monday at IU Bloomington. The meeting will take place in the Peterson Room at the IU Foundation, 1500 N. State Road 46 Bypass.

Trustees will use the meeting to discuss the proposed policy on expressive activity.

Similarly, the group also recommends IU establish a plan to implement the new expressive activity policy, and start new training, communication and audit procedures to ensure it consistently applies the policy.

“IU should clearly communicate this plan to relevant stakeholders and set expectations regarding the Indiana State Police’s involvement,” the report continues. “IU should impose predictable and consistent conduct consequences for violating any new policy.”

Additionally, the firm recommended that the IU president adopt a policy of “not issuing official statements about public matters that do not directly affect the university’s core functions.” IU President Pamela Whitten’s original statement on the Israel-Hamas War from October 2023, drew harsh criticism for not mentioning specific groups or nations beyond referencing “the Middle East.”