The university’s 65-page response to a federal lawsuit filed by former marching band director Jonathan Waters accuses him of a “pattern of concealment” before and during the internal investigation that led to his firing July 24.
Waters’ attorney, David Axelrod, said, “We will aggressively attack those accusations and innuendos in court. It is a shame that the university is so willing to publicly disparage the marching band — one of its crown jewels — to defend its bad decision.”
Waters has been a part of the OSU Marching Band since he joined as a student member in 1995. He held the director job, which paid $150,000 a year, for a little less than two years before he was dismissed for turning a blind eye to sexual harassment, hazing and a sexualized culture within the band, according to the university.
Waters sued in U.S. District Court, saying his rights to due process had been violated because he wasn’t given a chance to tell his side of the story about changes he had been pushing within the band.
After his firing, officials found a copy of a 2007 calendar in Waters’ office that featured band members partially clad in sexually suggestive poses, according to court filings. In the calendar, which was marked “for Jon Waters’ eyes only,” Mr. September stands naked with a band hat strategically placed over his genitals.
Waters knew about — and even appeared in at least one — student-produced raunchy video, according to the OSU court filing. He failed to disclose the videos during the OSU investigation, the filings said.
In a 2012 video, a topless female band member opens a door for an unsuspecting pizza delivery man. In a 2010 video, a female band member is on her knees before two male band members, simulating oral sex on them while singing “Hang On Sloopy.” The university did not immediately release the videos.
The university also noted that following a Jan. 22, 2014 sexual harassment training session, a female student complained to Waters that she felt harassed by offensive and sexist comments some male band members were tweeting during the session.
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