Introduction:
The Dean of the College contacted the Honor Council chair after learning of an incident involving a stolen golf cart and damage done to it by two Haverford students, Tiger and Chi-Chi. Over the past few months, Tiger had also been involved in several incidents which resulted in the destruction of college property. The Honor Council chair presented the case to Honor Council, who reached consensus on a suspicion of violation. The case was sent to a Joint Honor Council-Administrative Panel because it involved Administrative concerns.
Tiger's Statement:
When Tiger met with Security after the incident, he gave the following statement, but did not sign it. He returned the next day of his own accord and revised the statement.
STATEMENT 1 (unsigned):
On the day in question, Tiger and Chi-Chi's golf team won their Ryder Cup match. That night, the entire team got together for a party, at which both Tiger and Chi-Chi were drinking. Tiger estimated that he had 18 beers over the course of the evening. He stated that as a result of his drinking, he was unable to make judgment calls. At around 11:00 PM, Tiger left the party and noticed a golf cart behind the clubhouse where the party was. After noticing that the keys were in the ignition, he went back into the clubhouse and found Chi-Chi. Most people were leaving the party to go to another party. Tiger asked Chi-Chi if he wanted to drive down to the other party. Chi-Chi thought it was a good idea. Before leaving the party, Tiger and Chi-Chi found a prospective caddie, Greg, and brought him along on their ride. He noted that when they got into the cart, there was already some damage and the engine was not running properly. After driving around campus for a bit, they had just started to head towards the new party when they saw the PGA security truck. At this point, Tiger stopped the golf cart and all three passengers fled on foot. Tiger ran to the new party and later was approached by Chi-Chi who said that he had been caught by the PGA security. They decided to meet the next morning for brunch to discuss the incident. At their meeting, they decided that they would both go to the PGA security to tell them what had happened.
STATEMENT 2 (signed):
One afternoon, while returning home from 18 holes of golf, Tiger Woods passed by a golf cart outside of the driving range. He noted that the keys were in the ignition and decided to take them. He held onto the keys for two weeks, but did not use them because he was aware of the fact that he should not.
On the night in question, Tiger had been drinking excessively. He recalled taking the golf cart from the PGA security office, and driving around campus. He did not remember if anyone was with him at the time. He returned to the clubhouse to find Chi-Chi. From this point onward, Tiger's account of the events in statement one is accurate to the best of his recollection.
Chi-Chi's Statement:
Chi-Chi told the panel that he had attended the Ryder Cup match victory party on the night in question. After the party had started to die down, Tiger approached Chi-Chi and offered him a ride to the new party in a golf cart. Chi-Chi and his prospective caddie, Greg, went outside with Tiger and got into the golf cart. Before getting into the cart, Chi-Chi noticed that the cart was heavily damaged.
On the way to the party, they noticed a PGA security truck, at which point Tiger stopped the cart and everyone ran in different directions. Chi-Chi took off in the opposite direction from Tiger and was caught by the PGA security. After giving his name and ID number to the officer, he was told to contact security the following Monday. Chi-Chi then found Tiger at the new party and they agreed to meet for brunch. The next morning, Chi-Chi told Tiger that he was going to tell security the whole story, and he suggested that Tiger do the same.
Panel Questions:
The panel began asking clarifying questions and received the following new information:
Tiger said that he was clear on his decisions, but never considered the ramifications of his actions. He mentioned that he probably wouldn't have turned himself in if security hadn't caught Chi-Chi. The panel then asked Tiger if he was concerned about his pattern of behavior--in regards to this and prior incidents--under the influence of alcohol. Tiger answered that in some ways he was concerned because his drinking had led to problems. However, he also felt that his drinking was "under control." Tiger concluded by acknowledging that on the night of the incident, he drank way too much. In addition, Tiger stated that he vaguely recalled crashing into a tree behind the clubhouse.
Chi-Chi stated that the golf cart had been traveling about 20 M.P.H, and that they were in the golf cart for approximately five minutes. He noted that the ride had been fast and a little erratic and that Tiger had been oblivious to minor obstructions.
Panel Deliberations:
The panel first decided that it was necessary to separate discussion of Tiger and Chi-Chi's actions due to the discrepancy between the situations. The panel first considered Chi-Chi's part in the incident. While the panel acknowledged that Chi-Chi was not primarily responsible for the incident, the panel was still uncomfortable with Chi-Chi's actions. Specifically, the panel raised concerns about the fact that Chi-Chi did not try to stop Tiger from driving the cart, when Chi-Chi knew that Tiger was under the influence of alcohol. Additionally, the panel questioned Chi-Chi's participation in an activity that put the community's safety at risk. Finally, the panel was disturbed that Chi-Chi brought his prospective caddie along, thus endangering him as well. The panel then reached consensus on the following statements of violation.
Chi-Chi violated the Honor Code by failing to confront Tiger when he was engaging in dangerous behavior which resulted in both damage to college property and inconvenience to several college departments.
As a willing passenger, Chi-Chi participated in endangering the safety of both himself and other community members.
After presenting the statements of violation to Chi-Chi, the panel began discussing potential resolutions. Resolutions are supposed to address ERA (Education, Repairing the breach of trust, and Accountability). Because Chi-Chi had acknowledged his mistakes throughout the process, the panel felt that the resolutions should focus primarily on repairing the breach of trust between Chi-Chi and the departments of the College he inconvenienced. Additionally, during the presentation of the statements, Chi-Chi indicated that he would like to help pay for the repairs to the golf cart. The panel initially felt that since the damage to the cart had occurred before Chi-Chi's involvement, it was not his responsibility to pay for the damages. However, because Chi-Chi felt so strongly about contributing to the costs of the repairs, the panel agreed that he would be responsible for a small portion of the repairs. The panel reached consensus on the following resolutions.
1. Chi-Chi will write a letter of apology to the director of Athletics and the director of Safety and Security before the start of the next semester. (Copies should be forwarded to the co-chairs of the panel.)
2. Chi-Chi will complete a minimum of five hours service to the Athletic office and a minimum of five hours of service to the office of Safety and Security by the end of the next semester as a way of repairing the breach of trust between himself and the departments which he inconvenienced. Chi-Chi should forward a written statement to the co-chairs confirming that this part of the resolution has been completed.
3. Chi-Chi will contribute $100 to the cost of repairing the golf cart, by a date specified by the panel.
The panel then turned to discussion of Tiger's actions. In looking at Tiger's behavior, the panel felt that his actions were not in accordance with the community standards of "trust, concern and respect" set forth in the Honor Code. After much discussion, the panel reached consensus on the following statements of violation:
Tiger violated the Honor Code by failing to maintain the 'climate of trust, concern and respect' as outlined in the Honor Code (I. Introduction) and as specified below:
a. stealing the keys of a golf cart and retaining them for approximately 2 weeks.
b. stealing the cart and driving while intoxicated, thereby endangering the safety of the community, the passengers (including a prospective student) and himself.
c. damaging the golf cart, rendering the vehicle inoperable and inconveniencing several college departments.
d. initially submitting a false statement to security concerning the events of the evening.
Before exploring options for resolutions, the panel discussed some of the prior incidents in which Tiger had been involved. Over the past three months, Tiger had been involved in three other incidents, all of which had involved destruction of college property. One of the more serious incidents also occurred while Tiger was under the influence of alcohol. These previous incidents were handled by the dean's office. In addition to the panel's concerns about the night in question, the panel was also concerned with addressing Tiger's pattern of destructive behavior--especially while under the influence of alcohol.
During the presentation of the statements of violation, Tiger had suggested that one of the resolutions be that he pay for the damages to the golf cart. The panel, however, felt that this resolution alone did not adequately address their concerns or ERA.
Initially, the panel reached consensus on separation for a period of one semester, in addition to resolutions four, five, and six, as they stand below. However, when the panel presented these resolutions to Tiger, he was extremely uncomfortable. At this point in the proceedings, Tiger acknowledged that he had personal issues that felt would be better addressed with the resources and support of the Haverford community. Tiger requested that the panel reconsider their resolutions.
Taking into account Tiger's feelings, the panel met and had significant deliberations regarding the resolutions. While some members of the panel agreed with Tiger, other members felt that Tiger's separation addressed the fact that he put the community's safety at risk. These members were uncomfortable with resolutions that allowed Tiger to remain on campus and also felt that resources similar to those offered at Haverford are also available off-campus. After much discussion, the members of the panel who felt that Tiger should be separated agreed to replace this resolution on the condition that the new resolutions specifically and concretely addressed the issues of alcohol misuse and destructive behavior. In addition, these members also felt that resolutions further addressing accountability were in order.
The panel, having considered the severity of the golf cart incident in light of three previous instances of destructive behavior reached consensus on the following resolutions:
1. Tiger will spend 45 hours during the summer and 40 hours over the course of the next academic year focused on a course of action to obtain information/advice/ guidance/counseling from an agency or agencies dedicated to addressing the misuse of alcohol. The panel expects that at least 5 hours out of these 85 will be spent evaluating Tiger's patterns of alcohol consumption with a health care professional. We also expect that a considerable amount of the 85 hours will be devoted to exploring the issues underlying the destructive behavior. Tiger will submit at the end of the summer written proof of progress towards completion of his 45 hours, and each semester written proof of progress towards completion of the remaining 40 hours to the panel co-chairs. (This resolution stems from the fact that alcohol was a contributing factor in 2 of the 4 incidents of destructive behavior.)
2. In addition, Tiger will perform 40 hours of service to the Athletic Department and 40 hours of service to Safety and Security as a way of repairing the breach of trust between himself and the departments which he inconvenienced. This service must be completed by the end of the next academic year.
3. Tiger will re-sign his Honor Code pledge card twice: the first will take place just before the next Academic year to affirm that his acknowledged pattern of destructive behavior will not continue; and the second will take place upon completion of his hours of service and counseling as a promise that this work has been completed.
4. Tiger will pay for the balance of damages to the golf cart (assessed at $722.40) no later than 15 days before the start of the next academic year.
5. Tiger will write a letter of apology to the community and the directors of Athletics and Safety and Security no later than 15 days before the start of the next academic year.
6. If Tiger is found in violation of the Honor Code again, we ask that the panel be advised of his previous infractions and resolutions. The Dean of the College will be responsible for informing the co-chairs of the panel at the appropriate time.
Presentation of Resolutions:
The panel presented the resolutions to both Tiger and Chi-Chi, who agreed to them. Tiger thanked the panel for reconsidering his separation. They left the room, and the panel reached a final consensus on the resolutions. With a moment of silence, the panel concluded.
Note: If you have further comments or questions about this abstract, Honor Council offers the opportunity for you to discuss this abstract with an actual member of the panel. Please contact the Honor Council Chair for more information. If you have general comments about this or any other abstract, please contact your Honor Council Representative.
Questions - Tiger & Chi-Chi Abstract:
1. Do you agree with the panel's decisions? Why or why not?
2. How should Honor Council deal with cases in which the confronted party has a history of similar violations? Does it matter if these violations were formally adjudicated?
3. In this scenario, do you think it would have been more productive to have Tiger deal with issues of alcohol misuse on or off campus?
4. Alcohol has been an issue in several of the recent Joint Panel abstracts. Do you have any creative suggestions for resolutions regarding alcohol misuse/abuse that this or other panels may have overlooked?
5. Other comments?
Please return this sheet of questions to any Honor Council member. Alternatively, you can slip them under the door to the Honor Council office on the third floor of the Campus Center. Thank you in advance for your input.