Tripp Hall Not Investigated By Jones Day

In an email sent Wednesday, an OU spokesperson said former OU Vice President Tripp Hall was not investigated by the university’s hired investigators, despite at least two public accusations of sexual assault.

Hall was accused publicly by two former students, Jess Eddy and Levi Hilliard, of repeated incidents of unwanted sexual contact, assault and in one incident battery.

Hilliard is currently suing Hall in civil court over the alleged incidents.

OU officially ended its investigation into former President David Boren after Boren cut ties with the university two weeks ago, but it was generally presumed the Jones Day law firm included the allegations against Tripp Hall in its investigation too. Jones Day was hired to conduct two investigations into David Boren and financial misreporting that in total cost tax-payers more than a million dollars.

"Jones Day hasn't investigated allegations related to Trip Hall,” OU Spokesperson Lauren Brookey said.  “They were not hired to do so." When asked whether OU planned to investigate Hall internally Brookey did not answer directly, saying the University investigates every Title IX complaint.

"It’s disturbing that in spite of having evidence of Mr. Hall's misconduct, OU and the Regents elected to turn a blind eye and not fully investigate him,” Hilliard’s attorney Rand Eddy said. Eddy is also the father of Jess Eddy. “This is indicative of a pattern and practice the Regents not only tolerated but enabled for years at OU.”

Both Boren and Hall have strongly and repeatedly denied the accusations against them. 

The revelation that Hall was not included in the Jones Day report gives some insight to the scope of the Jones Day investigation and what may be in the law firm’s report, which OU’s Board of Regents has reviewed. It also comes as the Regents wrap up a three-day long meeting retreat in Sulphur in which it’s unclear if regents discussed the investigation or allegations amongst themselves.

Read Related: OU Tells Boren Accuser He Was In A 'Hostile Work Environment'