Acknowledging that the 2018 on-campus murder of track star Lauren McCluskey was “preventable,” the University of Utah has agreed to pay $13.5 million to her parents in a legal settlement.
The Salt Lake Tribune reports that the agreement settles two civil rights lawsuits that argued the university could have done more to keep McCluskey safe after she repeatedly went to campus police in the weeks before she was killed.
At a news conference, University President Ruth Watkins said she was “sincerely sorry” for McCluskey's death.
“The university acknowledges and deeply regrets that it did not handle Lauren’s case as it should have,” she read from a statement, “and that, at the time, its employees failed to fully understand and respond appropriately to Lauren’s situation.”
Her comments Thursday contrast with her insistence shortly after the murder that there wasn’t “any reason to believe this tragedy could have been prevented.”
McCluskey, 21, of Pullman, Wash., described by the university as "a highly regarded member of the university’s track and field team and an outstanding scholar," was found fatally wounded on Oct. 22, 2018, in a parked car near the south tower of the Medical Plaza, a residential hall on campus.
An investigation found that McCluskey was being harassed by a man she had briefly dated, but when she went to authorities, her concerns were not taken seriously.
Jill and Matt McCluskey, Lauren's parents, had asked for an admission of responsibility from the university.
The university will pay $10.5 million to the parents — coming from its insurance provider — with an additional $3 million going to the Lauren McCluskey Foundation, which the parents have set up to improve safety on campuses across the nation.
