THE CASE AGAINST MIKE GARRISON

UPDATE: consider this post under revision until further notice. If you have questions, ask.

The first thing you need to understand is that just because Mike Garrison wasn’t physically in the room during the October 15 decisional meeting, that in no way excuses him from responsibility. That’s tantamount to the president of a nation insisting he’s not responsible for the bombs dropped by his own military. It’s a conclusion supported by neither ethics or law.

The second thing is, it’s never the crime — it’s the cover up. Immediately after Mike Garrison’s most senior advisers agreed to falsify Heather Bresch’s transcript, the University issued a statement blaming the entire thing on her failure to pay a $50 graduation fee. It was a lie, and they knew it. And Mike Garrison went along with the whole thing.

Even if you consider everything in the light most favorable to Mike Garrison, he still bears ultimate responsibility for what happened. Even if Garrison really didn’t make the call — if he really wasn’t responsible for the “palpable pressure” and “prevailing sentiment” that Bresch should be granted the degree “if at all possible” — he was the man in charge. He knew exactly what happened in that meeting, and he approved all of it. He knew because his 3 closest and most highly paid advisers were there for him. They telephoned him right after the meeting to let him know exactly what happened. He knew what happened, he let it happen, and he approved the whole thing. Mike Garrison put his seal of approval on every single thing that happened in the decisional meeting.

And even if you consider everything in the light most favorable to the people in the decisional meeting — if you give them the complete benefit of the doubt about their intentions — what they did was so clearly wrong.

The President’s top advisers — Alex Macia, Craig Walker, and Bill Case — along with Lang, Sears, Logar, Blakely and Speaker — sat in a room and decided to give Heather Bresch credit for classes she never took, never attended, and never even paid for. They knew what they were doing. Heather was to receive full credit for work they knew she never did.

At one point in the meeting, Paul Speaker actually said that they were doing “the one thing they knew didn’t happen.” But they went ahead and did it anyway. And as they were finishing up, Alex Macia — Garrison’s right hand man since the Wise administration, and the direct extension Garrison’s power in that room — said “It looks like she completed the requirements … Does anyone have any problems with that?” No one objected. It was over. And within minutes, Mike Garrison knew about the whole thing, and signed off on it.

The man in charge said it was OK.

But here’s the thing — they knew what they did was wrong, just as much as you and I do. Which is why they told a COMPLETELY DIFFERENT STORY to the press.

That same day, WVU spokeswoman Amy Neil was ready with the University’s official statement:

“Based on verified university records, she has completed her degree. We went through records from 10 years ago to make sure all the credits were completed. We were able to verify that all the class work was completed. She did all 48 hours.”

She went on to explain that Bresch’s grades weren’t put on record because she neglected to pay a $50 graduation fee.

That, my friends, is a BALD FACE LIE. The University LIED, and they knew it. Mike Garrison knew that what they were telling the press wasn’t true. They found no records. The only records were the ones they were about to create. There was no verification that she completed class work — they were giving her credit for class work they knew she never did. And there was never a problem with a $50 dollar graduation fee. Heather Bresch’s grades weren’t on record because there were no grades.

Mike Garrison, the man in charge, knew about all this and he let it happen.

They took a chance.

They took a chance that they could blame the whole thing on a $50 dollar graduation fee, and that no one would be the wiser.

They lost.

And till this very day, Mike Garrison has never said who gave Amy Neil that statement. She sure as hell didn’t write it. Which is funny, because Mike Garrison can turn up 70 problem degrees going back 10 years in under 60 days — but he doesn’t care about who told Amy Neil to LIE TO THE PRESS AND THE PEOPLE OF WEST VIRGINIA about Heather Bresch’s degree.

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Even if Heather Bresch really did take those classes and the records really were lost (something we know didn’t happen), and they gave her grades without consulting her professors, that would be bad enough. But what happened was far worse. They made up grades for classes they knew she didn’t take, or even paid for. And Mike Garrison said it was OK.

Even if Garrison’s administration were to have told Amy Neil to tell the press “we discover what happened — she had a ‘life credit’ arrangement with Professor Speaker, but never followed up on it. The grades were never assigned, but we have them now.” — that would have been terrible. A complete mess. But what they did was even worse. They tried to cover it up. And Mike Garrison said it was OK.

And even if Mike Garrison had no idea of the misdeeds that went on under his watch on October 15 — the falsifying of Heather Bresch’s transcript; the LIES told to the media to cover it up — that means Mike Garrison is utterly and totally incompetent. In which case the Board of Governors is DUTY BOUND to fire him, and begin the search for a new President.