An injunction filed today against UCLA asks a judge to order the university to lift or modify the interim suspension of Hakop Kaplanyan, a men’s water polo player who was accused of rape.
Kaplanyan was arrested in early April for allegedly raping a female student in his UCLA dorm room. Afterward, UCLA placed Kaplanyan on interim suspension.
A hearing about the injunction will be held Friday at 8:30 a.m. at the Stanley Mosk Courthouse, which is part of the Los Angeles Superior Court, according to a statement posted on Facebook by Berc Agopoglu, Kaplanyan’s lawyer.
The university plans to contest the injunction in court Friday, said UCLA spokesman Phil Hampton.
Agopoglu told ABC News earlier this month that the interim suspension constituted an “emergency,” as Kaplanyan is missing class. Agopoglu could not be reached for comment but regularly posts updates on Facebook regarding the case.
The Los Angeles County District Attorney has not yet filed charges against Kaplanyan in connection with the alleged rape. A District Attorney spokeswoman said in early May that the case was “under review.”
UCLA rejected Kaplanyan’s attempt to appeal his interim suspension with the university at the beginning of May, which prompted Agopoglu to file the injunction, he said in a statement.
When appealing the suspension, Agopoglu argued that UCLA did not follow the proper procedure in imposing the interim suspension on Kaplanyan.
Agopoglu said that university officials did not provide Kaplanyan with a report about the interim suspension, as is required by the UCLA Student Conduct Code.
Later, Agopoglu received a report regarding the interim suspension, he said in a comment on his firm’s Facebook page. Agopoglu said in another statement that the report did not consider Kaplanyan’s side of the story.
University spokesman Phil Hampton said in a statement that “the campus is confident that it has appropriately followed procedures outlined in the student conduct code.”
Compiled by Erin Donnelly, Bruin senior staff, with contributing reports from Yael Levin, Bruin contributor.