Tidewater Community College Policy 1108 Rev: 4
Policies and Procedures May 31, 2018
of this policy and files a complaint against a faculty member, staff member, or student,
or third party.
Consent: Any sexual activity or sex act committed against one’s will, by the use of
force, threat, intimidation, or ruse, or through one’s mental incapacity or physical
helplessness is without consent. Consent is knowing, voluntary, and clear permission
by word or action, to engage in mutually-agreed upon sexual activity. Silence does not
necessarily constitute consent. Past consent to sexual activities, or a current or
previous dating relationship, does not imply ongoing or future consent. Consent to
some sexual contact (such as kissing or fondling) cannot be presumed to be consent
for other sexual activity (such as intercourse). An individual cannot consent who is
under the age of legal consent. The existence of consent is based on the totality of
the circumstances, including the context in which the alleged incident occurred.
Mental incapacity means that condition of a person existing at the time which
prevents the person from understanding the nature or consequences of the sexual
act involved (the who, what, when, where, why, and how) and about which the
accused knew or should have known. This includes incapacitation through the use of
drugs or alcohol. Intoxication is not the same as incapacitation.
Physical helplessness means unconsciousness or any other condition existing at
the time which otherwise rendered the person physically unable to communicate
an unwillingness to act and about which the accused knew or should have known.
Physical helplessness may be reached through the use of alcohol or drugs.
Dating Violence: Violence, force, or threat that results in bodily injury or places one in
reasonable apprehension of death, sexual assault, or bodily injury committed by a
person who is or has been in a close relationship of a romantic or intimate nature with
the other person. The existence of such a relationship shall be determined based on a
consideration of the length of the relationship, the type of relationship, and the
frequency of interaction between the persons involved in the relationship.
Domestic Violence: Violence, force, or threat that results in bodily injury or places
one in reasonable apprehension of death, sexual assault, or bodily injury and that is
committed by a person against such person's family or household member, which
includes a current or former spouse a person with whom the victim shares a child in
common, or who is cohabitating with or has cohabitated with the person as a spouse
or intimate partner.
Respondent: Refers to the individual who has been accused of violating this policy.
Responsible Employee: A responsible employee is one designated for purposes of
initiating notice and investigation of alleged violations of this policy or who has the
authority to take action to redress violations of this policy. A responsible employee
also is any employee who a person reasonably believes is a responsible employee.
[Any employee with supervisory authority is a responsible employee. Alternatively, the
College may name responsible employees by title, or name employees who are CSAs
as responsible employees.] A responsible employee shall not be an employee who, in
his/her position at the College, provides services to the campus community as a
licensed health care professional, (or the administrative staff of a licensed health care
professional), professional counselor, victim support personnel, clergy, or attorney.
Review Committee: Review committee refers to the committee consisting of three or
Sexual Violence, Domestic Violence, Dating Violence, and Stalking
Page 26 of 32