Honor Council Cases

Spring 2007 - No cases to report

Fall 2007 - No cases to report

Fall 2005

Charge: plagiarism and cheating
Plead: Guilty
Sanctions: 1) Failure of exam; able to retake under the department guidelines,
2) Probation until successful admission to candidacy,
3) Encouraged continued use of the Writing Center for help with plagiarism until
completion of proposal.

Charge: The use of unauthorized assistance on an examination;
Plead: Guilty
Sanctions: 1) The individual will retake a different version of the exam and
the resulting grade will replace the grade that he received. 2) A 12 month
mentoring program will be completed with a focus on professionalism. 3)
Academic probation until completion of mentoring. Following a satisfactory
evaluation by the mentor, this sanction will be lifted.

Spring 2005

There were six new cases reported since the last meeting of the University Honor Council

Charge: Plagiarism
Verdict: Guilty
Sanctions: Failure of course, Repeat course and assignment with no change of
grade, Probation until admission to candidacy, Retake Ethics component of ESP,
Completion of 25 hours of writing assistance at the writing center

Charge: Plagiarism
Verdict: Guilty
Sanctions: Expulsion
Appeal: Pending

Three students were formally accused of plagiarism/or cheating. One student
withdrew from the University prior to the Formal Hearing. The other two
students cases were as follows:

Charge: Plagiarism
Verdict: Guilty
Sanctions: Failure of course with notation on transcript "Failure due to Honor
Code violation.", Repeat course, Probation until graduation, Retake Ethics
component of ESP

The students are still within their right to appeal this to the Dean.

Charge: Plagiarism
Verdict:
Sanctions:

Charge: Cheating
Verdict:
Sanctions:

Fall 2004

There was one case reported since the last meeting of the University Honor Council in the spring

Charge: Unprofessional behavior
Verdict: Not guilty
Sanctions: none

Spring 2004

There were six new cases reported since the last meeting of the University Honor Council in the fall.

Charge: Cheating.
Verdict: Not guilty.
Sanctions:

Charge: Cheating.
Verdict: Not guilty.
Sanctions:

Charge: Cheating.
Verdict: Not guilty.
Sanctions:

Charge: 1) Cheating; 2) Facilitating Academic Dishonesty.
Verdict: 1) Not guilty; 2) Guilty.
Sanction: Letter on record of conviction of Honor Code violation.

Charge: Cheating.
Verdict: Guilty.
Sanctions: Recommendation of failure of the course.
Appeal: The dean overturned the sanction of failure of the course.

Charge: Falsification of information in the clinical setting.
Verdict: The student pled guilty.
Sanctions: The student was reprimanded by the dean of the college and sent a letter of apology to the college student body.

Charge: Unprofessional behavior.
Verdict: Guilty.
Sanctions: Suspension for three months, counseling at CAPS, anger management counseling, and probation for the remainder of the student’s time at MUSC.

Fall 2003

There were two new cases reported since the last meeting of the University Honor Council in the early fall.

Charge: Plagiarism.
Verdict: The student pled guilty.
Sanctions: The student failed the course and will be required to repeat it, send a letter of apology to the course coordinator, perform 2 hours of community service each month, and was referred to CAPS for counseling. The student will remain on probation until completion of all requirements.

Charge: Cheating on a test.
Verdict: Guilty.
Sanctions: The student failed the course, was suspended and may not return until the next academic year. The student will remain on probation until graduation from MUSC.
Appeal: The dean upheld all sanctions imposed by the Honor Council.

There were four new cases reported since the last meeting of the University Honor Council in the spring.

Charge: Plagiarism.
Verdict: The student pled guilty.
Sanctions: The student had to rewrite the paper, make appointments with faculty and the writing center for guidance on appropriate writing techniques, and receive a zero for the paper.

Charge: Falsifying documents and lying.
Verdict: The student pled guilty.
Sanctions: Expulsion.

Charge: Cheating on a test.
Verdict: Not guilty.
Sanctions:

Charges: Plagiarism.
Verdict: The student pled guilty.
Sanctions: The student failed the course, was placed on probation, and had to seek writing help to complete the assignment appropriately.

Spring 2003

There were two new cases reported since the last meeting of the University Honor Council in the fall.

Charge: Lying to faculty members regarding patient treatment.
Verdict: Guilty.
Sanctions: Failure of the course, remaining in clinic through the fall of 2003 semester, assignment of a suitable patient load until completion of the assigned time.

Charge: Plagiarism
Verdict: Guilty
Sanction: Failure of the course, suspension for one academic semester, and repetition of the course upon reentry to classes.

Fall 2002

No new cases were filed.

Spring 2002

Two formal accusations were made, one of which proceeded to a formal hearing. No sanctions were filed.

Spring 2001

There have been two Honor Council hearings thus far involving two students from different colleges. 

The first case involved a student accused of lying.  The student pleaded guilty to the charge.  The sanctions were a letter of reprimand, probation for one year, and CAPS counselling.

The second case involved a student accused of cheating.  The Honor Council found the student guilty. Sanctions were: failure of the course and expulsion from the college.  This decision and sanctions were upheld by the college’s dean and went into effect at that time.

Please contact the Honor Council Chairman Will MacDonald at macdonwd@musc.edu

Fall 2000

The Fall semester of 2000 proved to be a quiet one with no Honor Council Hearings reported. 

Spring 2000

During the Spring 2000 semester, four cases were brought before two of the college honor councils. The four cases involved a total of five charges.

In one college two separate cases were heard on two separate charges of cheating on a test. In both cases, the honor council found the students to be guilty. The recommended sanction for both students was suspension until the spring semester of 2001. Both students appealed to the dean of the college. The dean upheld the decision but reduced the sanction to failure of the course.

In one college two separate cases were heard by the honor council. The first involved two charges against two students, and was an accusation of duplicate work on an assignment. The students pleaded guilty to this charge, and the honor council recommended placing the students under probation that would end upon graduation. These same students were also charged with sharing answers and work on another assignment. Both students pleaded not guilty. After the presentation of evidence during the formal hearing, one student admitted guilt. The honor council recommended the sanction of failure of the course for this student. It was determined that the acquisition of the common work occurred after the other student had completed the assignment and without that student¹s knowledge. Therefore, the second student was found not guilty.

The second case heard also involved two students. These students were accused of having a test key in their possession. At the Formal Hearing of the honor council, the students pleaded not guilty. The honor council deliberated on each student individually and found both students not guilty of the charge.

FALL 1999

During the fall 1999 semester, one of the six college honor councils heard one case. A student was accused of cheating on a nationalized licensing exam. The accused student pleaded not guilty to the charge. The student was found guilty by a Formal Hearing of the honor council. The honor council decided on a sanction of immediate expulsion for the student. The student exercised the right of appeal to the dean of the college. The dean upheld the honor council's decision but reduced the penalty to a one year suspension and counseling through the University CAPS program.