A Ball State University employee was charged Tuesday in connection with an incident in which police said he hit a student's car, took her keys and punched her in the face.
Thomas Donovan, a programmer/analyst in the Office of the Vice President of Student Affairs and Enrollment Management, faces two Class D felonies for theft and obstruction of justice and two Class A misdemeanors for battery and interference with reporting a crime. If convicted on all counts, he could face up to eight years in prison, Eric Hoffman, Delaware County deputy prosecuting attorney, said.
According to the police report, on June 24, 45-year-old Donovan rear-ended 23-year-old junior Kyra Moore at the intersection of Bethel Avenue and Clara Lane near McGalliard Road.
Detective Nathan Sloan of Muncie Police Department said things escalated from there.
"The way I understand it, it was a slight rear end, and then the road rage ensued from there," Sloan said.
Four witnesses and Moore said that Moore then got out of her car to exchange insurance and license information, according to the police report. Donovan did not wish to report the incident to police, Moore said. Moore proceeded to get his license plate number, Sloan said.
Donovan told police that Moore physically abused him, but all of the witnesses and Moore said that Donovan tried to use Moore's keys to move her car himself, according to the police report.
When she tried to stop him, he got out of the car with her keys. As she tried to get them back, Donovan punched her in the eye, Sloan said.
The witnesses and Moore said Donovan moved back toward his car, according to the police repot. Moore called 911 at this point while still trying to get her keys back, according to the police report. Witnesses said that Donovan tried to wrestle the phone away from Moore to prevent the call but did not gain possession of it, according to the police report.
"I had it [the cell phone] gripped in my hands, and he couldn't get it away, and that's when he hit me the second time in the same spot on my right cheekbone," Moore said. "By that time, I just stepped back on the concrete median and let him take my car keys."
In Moore's account, she then watched as Donovan took off in his car -- still in possession of her keys.
Donovan did not wish to comment, and his lawyer could not be reached for comment.
Police said Donovan was arrested on June 29 on the Ball State campus by a Muncie police officer, with a University Police Department officer assisting. He was released on a $7,500 bond after several hours and has returned to work.
Heather Shupp, executive director of university communications, said the university does not plan on any disciplinary actions against Donovan whether he is convicted.
"There was no connection to her status as a student or his status as an employee [during the altercation]," Shupp said. "Ball State has not gotten any information referring to him as a threat. What the university's obligation to do is assess whether there is a threat, take the appropriate actions and then we need to let the justice system run its course."
Donovan was hired by Ball State on March 29, 2004, as a professional employee. He is under contract through June 2005 and has had no disciplinary problems.
Shupp said Donovan has been instructed to have no contact with Moore.
However, Moore said she does not want to go into the building Donovan works in.
Shupp said that, even with felony and misdemeanor charges, no action can be predicted on the part of the university.
"There is no policy that says you may not work at the university if you are convicted of a crime," Shupp said.
Ball State does have a policy toward students, though.
As part of its recent "Police Yourself" campaign, the university made it clear that it will hold students responsible for their actions on and off campus, as noted in a March letter to parents from Acting President Beverley Pitts.
"We also announced that students arrested or cited by Muncie police would be referred to the Dean of Students Office to follow the same disciplinary process as students arrested or cited by our own police," Pitts wrote. "By taking this step, we made our message to students very clear: We expect appropriate and lawful behavior both on and off campus, and violations of those expectations will have a direct impact on your standing with the university."
Hoffman said he expects a hearing to come in the next week to determine a trial date.
"They said that [the trial process] could take up to a year, and who's to say that this won't happen again within the next year to someone else?" Moore asked.,,2(&3-áN_donovan_7.15DNEditorial,,2SORT™+â-ä2AUDT
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