Purdue employee says rape threats were ‘a complete fabrication’
The college said ‘We don’t condone it, but at this time no personnel action is intended’
Jamie Newman, a Purdue Division of Dance accompanist, was accused Wednesday evening of posting a rape threat in the comments section of a pro-life news site under an account in his name.
Members of Purdue Students for Life filed a report with the police, which conducted an investigation questioning Newman and the legitimacy of the account and the threats.
Purdue spokesman Brian Zink announced the case was closed due to a lack of “sufficient evidence to take action.”
The university also acknowledged the offending post was “repugnant and inconsistent with Purdue values.”
The conclusion resolved: “We don’t condone it, but at this time no personnel action is intended.”
Newman explained the alleged rape threats had been taken out of the context of a heated comment section discussion on Live Action’s news blog, a pro-life site.
He commented: “As for the idea that I actually threatened to rape some random stranger’s wife and children — well, that’s also a complete fabrication, but one built on a fragment of a much longer conversation.”
This comes after Newman’s reaction to recent controversial activity from the Purdue Students for Life, which has caused outrage from students, alumni, and members of the pro-life movement.
Last week, Purdue Students for Life posted an apology for a campaign themed around Black History Month.
They used the slogan “Hands Up Don’t Abort” and Newman disparaged them on Facebook by calling the students “vile, racist idiots.”