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Marshall Student Expelled Amid Sexual Assault Charges
By: Associated Press
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HUNTINGTON, W.Va. (AP) – A man who was allowed to remain enrolled at Marshall University despite being accused of raping a student will stay in jail after being expelled amid new sexual assault charges.
A West Virginia circuit court judge ordered Tuesday that Joseph Chase Hardin remain in custody following his arraignment on the more recent charges involving two women.
The 22-year-old’s attorney says he’s innocent.
Hardin was convicted of battery in the earlier case, where former Marshall student Alicia Gonzales accused him of raping her in her dorm in 2016.
The school expelled Hardin this month and has said it followed state law and federal regulations in handing Gonzales’ case. Those steps included issuing a no-contact order.
The AP doesn’t typically identify sexual assault victims without their permission, which Gonzales has granted.