Casper condemns
‘deplorable’ e-mail; police launch probe
University officials deplored a racist e-mail sent
early Saturday and have launched an investigation to
identify who sent it.
President Gerhard Casper and Dean of Students Marc
Wais responded Saturday morning with an e-mail to
Stanford community members condemning the racist note,
which had been sent to thousands of e-mail accounts.
Casper followed with a more detailed letter Saturday
night.
"A racist and otherwise highly offensive e-mail
was sent to Stanford addresses attacking Stanford
students identified by appalling epithets, the Stanford
administration and, indeed, the entire university,”
Casper wrote. “The e-mail purported to come from a
Stanford graduate student. ...It goes without saying that
the views expressed by the individual who sent the
message are highly deplorable, personally offensive to
me, and, I trust, will be rejected by the entire
community.”
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Casper said the university is doing all it can to
identify the perpetrator and will take prompt and serious
action once that identification is made.
Police Chief Marv Herrington said the incident was
being treated as a criminal matter and has launched an
extensive investigation.
“This may well be a violation of state law and we
intend to consult with the district attorney on Tuesday.
We also will consult federal authorities to see if
there's a violation of federal law as well,”
Herrington said.
The Stanford police do not believe at this point that
the perpetrator is the graduate student whose name
appeared as the author of the note, and the university
computer security specialist has concluded that the
message was not posted from the alleged author's account.
The server used to send the e-mail has been identified
and closed down.
University officials called a special meeting Sunday
night to discuss the hate mail with students, faculty and
staff. Staff members will continue to meet with students
during the week to ensure that their concerns are being
addressed. SR
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