Two members of The September 29th Movement were given conduct probation Thursday morning by officials with the Office of Judicial Affairs as punishment for their involvement with an unauthorized Nov. 5 town meeting.

The verdicts for six other student leaders involved with the town meeting, all Movement members, were deferred for up to five days.

The hearings were not open to the public.

Kel Munger, a graduate student in English, was found guilty of unauthorized use of university facilities and failure to comply with proper order.

She pleaded guilty to the first charge and not guilty to the second charge.

Taiyon Coleman, a graduate student in English, was found guilty of the same charges.

She pleaded the same way.

Conduct probation is a “period of review and observation [during] which the student must demonstrate the ability to comply with university rules, regulations and other requirements stipulated for the probation period,” according to the student handbook.

The sanction also states students may not serve as an officer in a university-recognized organization.

Munger was scheduled to be seated on the Graduate Student Senate later this semester.

“I believe the reason I’m being jammed is because I’m dangerous in that I’m vocal, that I’m active and I believe silence will kill us,” Munger said.

Matt Boles, attorney for The September 29th Movement, said the probations will take hold once Munger and Coleman receive official letters informing them of the sanctions.

Scary precedent

The verdicts aren’t good news for the other six Movement members, four of which face an additional charge of disrupting the rights of others or university programs or services. Suspension remains a possibility for those students.

Boles said both Munger and Coleman plan to appeal the decision. Upon receiving an appeal of an OJA decision, the Dean of Students Office has 10 days to schedule an All-University Judiciary hearing.

The AUJ is a committee of students, faculty and staff that hears cases against students who are accused of violating university procedures.

Thursday’s OJA administrative hearings were closed despite repeated requests from the accused students for open hearings. The students may request open AUJ hearings. According to the Student Information Handbook, the university must comply with that request.

As for the other six students who had hearings on Thursday, Boles said he expects Grace Weigel, programs coordinator for the OJA, to issue a verdict on Monday.

Weigel acted as judge, jury and prosecutor at the OJA hearings. She presented the university’s evidence, including a video tape of the town meeting, and handed down the sanctions. The only other university official present was Dian Gottlob, assistant counsel for University Legal Services.

The hearings were held in Weigel’s office in the Student Services Building.

Coleman said Weigel used an e-mail correspondence from Dean of Students Kathleen MacKay as evidence, but Movement members, Coleman said, were not permitted to use e-mail evidence in their defense due to “breach of confidentiality.”

“This is, ‘You shut up.’ That’s what this is,” she said. “Deep down in my heart I never thought I’d get conduct probation.”

University officials would not comment on specific hearings.

“There is absolutely no effort to keep anyone from speaking out on any issue. It’s simply a matter of there was a violation of university rules, and people are being held accountable through the system,” said John Anderson, interim director of university relations. “We will treat everyone in exactly the same way under the procedures.”

Administrative disputes

Munger said during her hearing, the first of the day, Boles and Weigel disputed whether Boles could record the conversation. Weigel said she would record the conversation and send a tape to Boles, but Boles argued that there was no rule prohibiting him from recording the conversation, Munger said.

During each of the hearings, the accused students said, written testimony was given by MacKay and Carol Cordell, a program coordinator with the Student Activities Center. An incident report was submitted by Loras Jaeger, director of the Department of Public Safety, they said.

Coleman said she was not in the incident report, although most others who have been sanctioned were in the report.

MacKay said she couldn’t comment on the hearings, except to say that the reason the OJA delayed ruling in the other cases was so it could make the “right decision.”

“You never want somebody to rush to a decision,” she said.

The other four students facing the most serious charges are:

* Allan Nosworthy, a graduate student in English. Nosworthy is a Government of the Student Body Senator, president of the Black Cultural Center and chairman of the The Movement.

* Milton McGriff, a graduate student in English. McGriff is a GSB senator and a spokesman for The Movement.

* Meron Wondwosen, a senior in political science and French. Wondwosen is the president of the Black Student Alliance and a member of The Movement.

* Theresa Thomas, a sophomore in design. Thomas is the president of the Asian-American Pacific Awareness Coalition and a member of The Movement.

The two others who face lesser charges are:

* Eric Imerman, a graduate student in sociology.

* A.D. Selha, a graduate student in women’s studies.

Paul Stucky, a graduate student in electronic engineering and a member of The Movement, faces a preliminary hearing — a procedure not documented in the Student Information Handbook — to determine if he should receive a new OJA hearing.

Stucky was reprimanded at a hearing last semester. The hearing had been postponed, but Stucky said he was not aware of it. Stucky said he showed up to the December hearing at the previously scheduled time. Stucky said Weigel then elected to hold the hearing despite the postponement.

Stucky’s preliminary hearing begins at 8 a.m. today.

Access denied

A Daily reporter attempted to attend the hearing for Nosworthy, claiming access under Iowa Open Meetings laws. Although Nosworthy requested an open hearing, Weigel denied access to the reporter.

University officials have said they are not required to open OJA hearings even if requested to do so by the accused student.

Weigel told the reporter that he must file a written request to attend. Before Thomas’ hearing, the reporter provided the written request.

It was denied.

McGriff was highly critical of the closed hearings.

“I think thus far the proceedings have been a travesty,” he said.

The students can continue to appeal university decisions all the way to the state Board of Regents. From there, the students must take their cases to the civil courts.