Columbia Settles With Student Accused of Rape

The Columbia University student very publicly accused of rape by a fellow student who carried around a mattress for a year as part of a performance art project has reached a settlement in his lawsuit against the university, reports the New York Times. Paul Nungesser sued Columbia a month before his 2015 graduation, alleging that by allowing Emma Sulkowicz's senior thesis about her experience to go forward, the school "became a silent bystander and then turned into an active supporter of a fellow student’s harassment campaign by institutionalizing it and heralding it."

Nungesser was cleared in Columbia's investigation. Terms of the settlement weren't disclosed, but Columbia said in a statement that it recognizes "Paul’s remaining time at Columbia became very difficult for him and not what Columbia would want any of its students to experience." (More Emma Sulkowicz stories.)