Police autos sit in entrance of College Hill Elementary College throughout from the campus of the College of Colorado after Matthew Harris, accused of creating violent threats towards the school in addition to the College of California, Los Angeles, was taken into custody following a standoff at his Boulder condominium complicated on Feb. 1, 2022, in Boulder, Colo. (AP Photograph/David Zalubowski)
LOS ANGELES --
A path of pink flags about his behaviour towards girls adopted Matthew Harris on an instructional journey that took him to 3 of the nation's most prestigious universities -- Duke, Cornell after which the College of California, Los Angeles.
Former graduate classmates at Duke and Cornell, the place he studied earlier than turning into a postdoctoral fellow at UCLA lately, described him as inappropriate and creepy, with obsessive behaviours towards some girls that grew to become harassment and, in at the very least one case, sexual harassment.
Final week, police in Colorado arrested Harris after he allegedly emailed an 800-page doc and posted movies threatening violence towards dozens of individuals at UCLA, prompting the college to cancel in-person lessons for a day.
Harris didn't communicate Tuesday throughout his look in federal court docket in Denver. One other listening to is scheduled for Feb. 23 and a decide ordered him to stay in custody. His public defender didn't instantly reply to a request for remark.
In on-line class opinions, interviews and emails obtained by The Related Press, present and former college students in any respect three universities alleged negligence by the faculties for letting Harris slide beforehand, regardless of his regarding conduct.
Two former Duke college students, who spoke to the AP on situation of anonymity as a result of they concern for his or her security, mentioned that whereas they didn't report Harris to the college on the time, his behaviour was well-known throughout the small philosophy program and they didn't really feel they might have been supported in the event that they'd come ahead.
Taken collectively, the scholars' allegations at three top-tier faculties increase questions concerning the line between uncomfortable and actionable behaviour, a college's responsibility to encourage the reporting of it, and an establishment's obligation to stop it from occurring at one other college.
The scholars' descriptions prompts one other query: What, if something, did the colleges do to get Harris assist?
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A graduate scholar at Duke as he accomplished his Ph.D. in 2019, Harris additionally attended Cornell for a 12 months earlier than UCLA employed him as a postdoctoral fellow and lecturer till he was placed on "investigatory depart" final March after allegedly sending pornographic and violent content material to his college students.
The previous Duke college students described their preliminary interactions with Harris as largely collegial, however with unusual undertones.
However Andrew Janiak, a Duke philosophy professor and former chair of the division, mentioned he by no means had any indication of such conduct. Janiak acquired the primary experiences of harassment in late March, after Harris had left Duke, and the philosophy professor instantly contacted UCLA.
Duke and Cornell declined to remark.
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The indicators have been there, like bread crumbs scattered throughout the three colleges.
A home celebration at Cornell the place Harris tried to rope a relative stranger right into a dialogue about his psychological well being. Detrimental opinions of his UCLA lectures. Odd interactions with girls on the Duke campus. Incessant textual content messages and emails.
"Nobody would take a look at that child and say, 'Oh, he is advantageous,"' mentioned Brian Van Brunt, an knowledgeable on campus violence and psychological well being. "Sometimes somebody like this did not simply seem out of nowhere."
Lately, most faculties and universities have fashioned behavioural intervention and menace evaluation groups in response to highschool shootings. Emails and court docket paperwork present UCLA's behavioural intervention workforce was concerned, however probably not till as late as March 30.
That spring, Harris started sending weird and disturbing emails. Emails to UCLA college students allegedly included pornographic and violent content material despatched to girls in his analysis group, prompting his suspension.
UCLA officers mentioned in an e-mail that individuals on the college "introduced considerations" to its Title IX workplace final 12 months, which "labored with the people to deal with the considerations." The college introduced Monday that it was making a activity drive "to conduct a complete assessment" of its protocols for assessing potential threats.
In April, Harris' mom reached out to a professor at College of California, Irvine, saying her son in January had threatened in emails to "hunt" and kill the girl. The professor had briefly met Harris in 2013 whereas they have been each at Duke and he reached out in 2020.
Harris' emails to his mom prompted the UC system and UCLA police to acquire protecting orders towards him.
In November -- months after he'd been involuntarily dedicated to a psychological well being facility and identified with schizophrenia -- Harris tried to purchase a gun however was denied due to these orders.
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Now, his former classmates marvel: How did Harris even get employed at UCLA?
The onus is on the incoming establishment to ask focused questions on an applicant past their educational credentials, based on Saunie Schuster, a lawyer who advises faculties.
Whereas colleges usually can not point out unproven accusations for concern of a lawsuit, Schuster mentioned, they'll do a background examine. It isn't clear whether or not UCLA officers did so; the college didn't reply AP's questions relating to its hiring course of.
Schuster mentioned a background search would've allowed inquiries to be posed to former employers like, "Has this particular person demonstrated any conduct that you have noticed that might offer you considerations?"
For Harris' former classmates, the reply is evident: Sure.
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Related Press writers James Anderson and Colleen Slevin in Denver contributed
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