BATON ROUGE – Enraged Louisiana legislators and distraught student survivors grilled Louisiana State University Interim President Tom Galligan for nearly three hours Wednesday about his decision not to fire employees found to have contributed to the school’s years-long, systemic failure to address sexual misconduct.

Their questions and complaints came during an all-day hearing before the state Senate Select Committee on Women and Children about sexual misconduct allegations and incidents at Louisiana’s colleges and universities. 

Some called LSU’s decision to only suspend two employees a “direct insult” and a “slap in the face” to victims. Democratic state Reps. Aimee Adatto Freeman and Regina Ashford Barrow compared LSU’s administration and athletic department to an “organized crime ring” and the “mafia” for keeping quiet about sexual misconduct at the school.