Willie Fudge III, now 27, was charged in 2016 with one count of exposure of sexual organs, a misdemeanor, and four counts of battery, for touching a person against her will in the campus parking garage. Courtesy of the University Police Department
By Emily Wunderlich
More than two years after a female student was accosted in the campus parking garage, her lawsuit against the university is still unresolved.
The lawsuit, filed in June 2017, contends that the woman – identified as L.E. in court documents – was “sexually assaulted” by a man who masturbated behind her in a parking garage elevator on the afternoon of Feb. 22, 2016.
It contends that the university and campus police “failed to provide adequate security” or warn her of past and potential crimes in the area and seeks at least $15,000 in damages.
But the university, which acknowledges that the student was a victim of “lewdness and/or indecent exposure,” denies she was sexually assaulted under the definitions of federal law.
It contends that the lawsuit should be dismissed, arguing that – as an agency of state government – the university has “sovereign immunity” and is immune from a civil lawsuit.
The doctrine of sovereign immunity stems from a longstanding tenet of English law that the sovereign – or government – can do no wrong.
After a May court hearing, Pinellas County Circuit Judge Thomas Minkoff gave both parties two weeks to make arguments in response to the university’s motion to dismiss the case. The arguments were filed on May 17 and are now awaiting a ruling from Minkoff.
Damian B. Mallard of Sarasota, the attorney representing L.E. in the case, did not return phone messages from The Crow’s Nest. The university’s attorney, James B. Thompson of St. Petersburg, also did not return calls for comment.
Although the lawsuit identifies the woman as L.E., some court documents fail to redact her name.
She could not be reached for comment, but her social media indicates that she graduated from the university last year. The Crow’s Nest does not name victims of sex-related crimes.
Meanwhile, the man who was charged in the case and ultimately went to state prison was released on Feb. 27, according to the Florida Department of Corrections.
Willie Fudge III, now 27, was arrested seven days after the parking garage incident. He was charged with one count of exposure of sexual organs, a misdemeanor, and four counts of battery, for touching a person against her will. But he was not charged with sexual assault.
The parking garage charges, plus an earlier conviction for grand theft, landed Fudge in the Pinellas County Jail between May 27, 2016, and Feb. 27, 2017.
He was returned to jail July 3 for violating his probation and then sentenced to 18 months in state prison, with credit for time served in the county jail.
The incident occurred around 4:20 p.m. on Feb. 22, 2016. L.E. was leaving campus after class when she noticed Fudge masturbating behind her in one of the parking garage elevators.
When the elevator stopped on the fourth floor, a police report says, L.E. “felt a breeze behind her and something wet touch her buttocks area.” Security video later showed Fudge bending behind her, “possibly recording her personal groin area … and lifting her dress from behind.”
Fudge, a non-student of the university who lived nearby, was reported on campus three other times that week.
While university police were interviewing L.E. and searching for the offender, a second woman reported a lewd and lascivious incident in which a man tried to force her hand into his groin area after a verbal exchange with him.
Security footage showed a third woman who had used the north stairwell and “was completely unaware that Fudge was behind her and masturbating,” according to police. That woman did not come forward.
Two days later, on Feb. 24, a fourth woman called police to say a man had followed her up the north stairwell of the garage, pretending that he thought her car was his, and leaving once she got in it.
Campus police identified the parking garage assailant as Fudge and caught up with him several days later, when St. Petersburg police arrested Fudge on a charge of domestic battery against his former girlfriend that was later dropped.
Be careful, police say
University police offer these recommendations for students, faculty and staff:
- Be alert to your surroundings.
- Avoid distractions.
- Walk with others when possible.
- Always have a plan.
- Trust your instincts.
- Secure your belongings.
- Report suspicious persons and incidents.
