Police: Villanova U. student declines to pursue charges in postelection incident
A black Villanova University student who reportedly was knocked to the ground by a group of young white men yelling, "Trump, Trump, Trump," days after the presidential election has declined to pursue charges, a spokesman for Radnor Township police said Monday.
A black Villanova University student who reportedly was knocked to the ground by a group of young white men yelling, "Trump, Trump, Trump," days after the presidential election has declined to pursue charges, a spokesman for Radnor Township police said Monday.
"The victim in this case has informed Radnor police that at this time she does not wish to pursue this matter any further," Lt. Andy Block said. "We're going to keep a case file on it. If she changes her mind, we'll absolutely investigate it."
The university, however, is continuing its investigation, spokesman Jonathan Gust said.
"As with any investigation, if the university finds an individual or individuals were responsible for wrongdoing, we would hold them accountable at the university level," Gust said.
The incident was reported as occurred in a SEPTA tunnel on campus the evening of Nov. 10, two days after the presidential election.
Block said police believe that the men were running through the tunnel yelling "Trump" and that the woman got knocked down, but police don't know whether it was intentional or what the motive was. Police have not spoken with the men who were involved, he said. They were awaiting information from the university, he said.
The young woman chose not to pursue the matter for personal reasons, Block said.
"She's very appreciative of everything that Radnor police did," he said.
The investigation at Villanova came amid reports of racist incidents in communities around the country after Donald Trump was elected president. At the University of Pennsylvania, some black freshmen received racist messages when they were joined to a GroupMe account against their wishes. Authorities have not said whether anyone will be charged in that case. The FBI is investigating and has questioned college students in Oklahoma.
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