Whitman College’s dean of students was appointed to Washington State’s Clemency and Pardons Board in Fall 2022.
In fall 2024, the Whitman Wire, Whitman’s student newspaper, ran a series of stories that included allegations of concerning and unprofessional behavior by the dean of students.
On December 12, 2024, the dean of students, acting in his personal capacity, used a Seattle-based law firm, Perkins Coie, to issue a cease-and-desist letter to the student journalists to have them retract their reporting about him that the letter alleged was false. The information being asked to be retracted about him included, “There’s a pattern of lies. There’s a pattern of bullying….” and “There was a pattern of behavior, [there were] multiple occasions when [dean of students] didn’t feel like he had control of the conversation or meeting, he would stand up, look down at those present, and pound his fist on the table…” The cease-and-desist letter states, “He did not lie. He did not bully. He did not bang on tables. Insinuations to the contrary are false, defamatory, and offensive.”
On the same day as the cease-and-desist was issued, December 12, 2024, the dean of students, as a board member of the Clemency and Pardons Board, adjudicated a hearing where the petitioner was represented by an attorney from Perkins Coie, that same law firm that issued his cease-and-desist letter. He disclosed that he had worked with this law firm in an unrelated matter and stated that he believed he could be fair.
Other potential conflicts existed in the hearing that more recently could be identified through nonprofit tax filings. A witness for the petitioner received financial reentry support from Fabians Fund, a nonprofit organization that the dean of students served as president and chairman, as documented on Fabians Fund form 990 from 2023. Counsel for the petitioner described the petitioner’s friendship with someone who worked for Fabians Fund.
The dean of student’s questions to the petitioner’s counsel appeared favorable to the petitioner. For example, he framed the petitioner’s gang-ordered murder of a witness who was to testify against the gang as something that was done secondarily to the petitioner’s desire to protect his family.
The dean of students seconded the motion to recommend granting commutation of the petitioner’s sentence.
TVW provides access to all hearings, including the video recording of this hearing. IRS Form 990s are available online for Fabians Fund. In multiple other hearings where the dean of students adjudicated, individuals connected to the dean of students, including other leaders of Fabians Fund, testified or submitted testimony on behalf of the petitioner.
This process does not appear to be fair or objective.
