Academic Offenses in Virginia

Academic offenses would be any reported conduct that violates the student code of rules and responsibilities. For example, cheating would be one. Cheating and plagiarism are the two most prominent types of offenses.

Colleges have an interest in maintaining the integrity of their students because they are going to be graduates representing the University once they get into the workforce. It is a screening process that is typical because schools would not want to graduate people who cannot do the work and who have to cheat to pass. They are trying to maintain the integrity of the degree people get when they graduate from that university or college.

However, it is understandable that sometimes professors or other officials jump to conclusions, leading to wrongful accusations leveled at students. In such instances, one should ask a Virginia student defense lawyer for assistance in clearing their name.

Most Common Academic Charges in Virginia

How a charge results from cheating on an exam depends on what type of exam it is and also how it is located, meaning whether it is in class or an online exam. There also can be plagiarism charges. These arise because a student needs to create a paper or document, but instead of writing their own they are going on the internet and taking either portions or the whole product of other authors and referring to it as their own work product, without correctly citing the source.

The use of the internet as a tool for universities to administer courses, homework assignments and exams opens up all types of doors to cheating. As a result there has to be more specific and different types of monitoring by administrative personnel to ensure the whole product is actually the student’s.

Potential Punishments for Violating University’s Honor Code

The punishments a Virginia university would dole out includes suspension, expulsion, possibly a simple reprimand, and then depending on the nature of the offense, potentially criminal charges. Should someone face criminal charges after an honor code violation, they should seek out an experienced student defense attorney in Virginia as soon as possible to cushion further criminal implications on their record.

Individuals that get involved in academic offense cases depend on how the university or the college is structured. Usually there is an administrative department in the student conduct office, or something similar, and then there will also be an honor code committee that consists of members of the student body.

How Universities Treat Student Offenses

Student academic offenses, though they may initially seem like no big deal, can have disastrous consequences on a person’s life in the long-term. For example, the term cybercrime will be any type of invasion of privacy through the use of a computer; including but not limited to the internet, email or social media. Whether or not it violates the criminal code is case specific. Conduct such as cyber bullying can also be prohibited by Virginia universities but may not necessarily be a crime.

The threshold as to whether or not the conduct crosses the line is case specific. There could be administrative repercussions for cyber activity, which is not really criminal but can still result in suspension, expulsion or reprimand from the university.

How a Virginia Student Defense Lawyer Can Help

The earlier a person retains competent Virginia student defense counsel to assist in the process the better. Once an individual is accused of this crime, any statements that are made to anyone other than an attorney are fair game to be used against the individual either in the administrative process, or in a civil or criminal action in court. Seeking the advice of counsel from the start will benefit that person by having a plan of action to combat the allegations, but also by having someone from whom they can seek counsel for proper advice to protect themselves from further damage during the process.