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Volume 123, No. 45 Distribution 10,000
Stamey, Nguyen expelled for cheating Honor conducts decade’s third public trial; jury finds College students collaborated during Biology 2020 exam taken in March By Grace Hollis
Cavalier Daily Associate Editor Sitting two rows behind thirdyear College students Alexander Stamey and Kevin Nguyen, their classmate could see them shuffling papers and whispering back and forth during an exam. In just the third open honor trial in a decade, an honor panel Sunday evening expelled Stamey and Nguyen on charges of collaboration and cheating. Every individual accused of an honor offense has the option of a public trial, but few choose to exercise that right. “It’s up to them to decide whether or not they’d like to waive their right to confidentiality,” Nash said. Their classmate, Medical graduate student Troy Nold, reported the pair to his teaching assistant during the third exam of Biology 2020 in March. Nold filed the incident as an honor offense in April. When the teaching assistant collected their exams,
Jenna Truong | Cavalier Daily
their exam papers had 49 out of 50 identical answers — a statistically improbable number — the Counsel for the Community, or prosecution, argued. Much of Sunday’s hearing came down to Stamey and Nguyen’s word against the eyewitness reports of two teaching assistants and Nold. Stamey and Nguyen maintained they had neither whispered during the exam nor exchanged any information about the test answers. Two-thirds of the eye-witnesses called to the case gave sworn statements that they did not witness any acts of cheating. “I studied very hard for the exam with Alex,” Ngyuen said in a statement. “We read through each chapter and quizzed each other so that we would understand all the concepts.” Nguyen and Stamey shared
In only the third open Honor trial in a decade, an honor panel Sunday evening expelled third-year College students Alexander Stamey and Kevin Nguyen, above, on charges of collaboration and cheating.
Please see Honor, Page A3
Nussbaum talks religion Residents want
upscale district
Renowned philosopher speaks against Islamophobia common to Western nations By Olivia Patton
Cavalier Daily Senior Writer Renowned philosopher Martha Nussbaum addressed a packed auditorium Friday afternoon, berating Western Islamophobia, a problem Nussbaum said continues to plague the country today. “Once, not very long ago, Americans and Europeans prided themselves on their enlightened attitudes of relig i o u s t o l e ra t i o n , a l t h o u g h everyone knew that the history of the West has actually been characterized by intense religious animosity and violence,” she said. Nussbaum, a service profes-
sor of law and ethics at the University of Chicago, said blatant legislative discrimination against Muslims in the United States, France, Belgium, Germany, and Spain, among other countries, requires examination. “Our situation calls urgently for critical self examination as we try to uncover the roots of ugly fears and suspicions that currently disfigure all Western societies,” Nussbaum said. Seventy percent of Oklahoma voters in 2010 opted to pass an amendment to the state’s constitution that singled out Shariah Law — the moral code of Islam — as something Oklahoma courts would not be
influenced by. Shariah law regulates Muslim personal conduct and provides rules on alcohol consumption, dietary practices, prayer and codes of honesty in business dealings. The amendment, approved by voters , was ultimately struck down as unconstitutional, and never went into effect. The measure mirrors other recent U.S. attempts at religious intolerance. Nussbaum shed light on a proposed Tennessee law that would have criminalized the practice of Shariah law with
City manager, Downtown Mall business owners seek policy regulating disorderly behavior
Please see Nussbaum, Page A3
Philosopher Martha Nussbaum, a service professor of law and ethics at the University of Chicago, spoke out Friday afternoon against Western Islamophobia that she said continues to plague the U.S.
Will Bynum | Cavalier Daily
Business owners on the Downtown Mall are worried disorderly conduct like panhandling, cursing and sleeping affects the Mall’s image.
By Matthew Comey
provide a solution for disruptive behavior on the mall. Every day shoppers pass the homeless sleeping on the mall, sitting on the mall and panhandling. City business owners say this behavior needs to change
Cavalier Daily Senior Writer
Business owners on the Downtown Mall are demanding that Charlottesville City Council clean up the mall’s image. At a Council meeting Monday City Manager Maurice Jones will present a report that aims to
Jenna Truong Cavalier Daily
Please see Conduct, Page A3
Workers complete Lawn fireplace repairs Academical Village Chimney Project workers earlier this month put the finishing touches on Lawn fireplaces , allowing Lawn residents to again use the hearths for warmth. Lawn residents discovered in August they would be unable to light the fireplaces until repairs could be undertaken. After the “Keep the Fires Burning” campaign, in con-
junction with the University and the Alumni Association, raised more than $3 million, the University hired six specialty construction firms and 10 Facilities Management construction workforces. Facilities Management workers and outside crews began
repairs in May. “The [University] is designated an UNESCO World Heritage Site, and so, we are all entrusted with a great heirloom,” said James Zehmer, the historic preservation project manager for the restoration . “We have a duty to act as stewards of this place, to ensure
NEWS IN BRIEF
that both the built environment and the heritage of the University are preserved and passed down to the next generation. Part of that heritage is having safe, operable fireplaces in the Academical Village, so that the heart and soul of Mr. Jefferson’s University will continue to burn bright for years to come.” The project, which University officials say kept within its
$3.5 million budget , repaired Lawn and Range fireplaces and installed a fire suppression system. Fourth-year College student Allison Abbott, a Lawn resident, said she has already begun to use her fireplace. “I think the project was a success,” she said. —compiled by Andrew Stewart
NEWS
IN BRIEF
Resident pleads guilty to O-Hill arson attempt Joseph Edward Duva , the 21-year-old man who attempted to burn down the University’s observatory last February, pled guilty Thursday to destruction of
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property, according to an Albemarle Circuit Court employee. Judge Cheryl Higgins ordered Duva to pay a $418.52 restitution fee to the University for
the damage. She sentenced him to five years in prison but suspended all but the six months he has already served. He is released on the condi-
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tion of two years of supervised behavior and five years of good behavior, said Roxanne Bruce, the Court employee. Duva was also arrested in
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March in relation to a vandalism spree that had taken place in the Fry Springs area.
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— compiled by Anna Perina
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