Libel victory for professor who branded her colleague sex predator
An ASTROPHYSICS professor who blew the whistle on an alleged sexual predator at a top space research centre has seen off a libel case against her.
Professor Carole Mundell had been facing a High Court trial after she exposed claims of ‘recurring’ sexual assaults against female PhD students by a colleague at Liverpool John Moores University.
The cosmologist accused her former boss at LJMU’s Astrophysics Research Institute, Professor Mike Bode, of helping alleged sex pest Dr Chris Simpson to take up a new job elsewhere despite the complaints made against him.
Professor Mundell, who has appeared on BBC Breakfast and BBC Radio 4, has previously spoken publicly about the ‘hostile workplace cultures’ women face in the science world. Her actions
‘Case would be bound to fail’
prompted Professor Bode to launch claims of libel and slander against her.
Professor Bode was said to have written a ‘glowing reference’ for Dr Simpson, which made no mention of the sexual assault claims that would ‘undoubtedly have resulted in his dismissal’.
Dr Simpson was therefore offered a top job at a South African institute, allowing him to leave LJMU and force a premature end to the investigation into his conduct, Professor Mundell believed.
After learning of this, Professor Mundell – now head of astrophysics at the University of Bath – contacted the South African Square Kilometre Array in 2014 and 2015 to alert them to a cover-up she believed to have been engineered by LJMU and Professor Bode.
She wrote: ‘I believe [Dr Simpson] has been given an academic reference from the head of the department [Bode] with no mention of character or conduct.
‘Simpson’s misconduct is becoming known more widely in some circles ... However, it is clear LJMU has worked hard to maintain silence such that even fellow academics within my institute do not know why he has resigned.’
The High Court also heard allegations that the Institute had been aware of complaints about Dr Simpson’s behaviour towards female PhD students from as far back as 2008, but only began to investigate six years later.
Professor Mundell claimed delays to the disciplinary process were engineered ‘possibly with the collusion of our HR and Institute management, who have been keen to cover up their previous cover-ups’.
On Thursday Mr Justice Warby threw out Professor’s Bode’s case against her, saying: ‘I see no real prospect that ... the claimant would succeed in establishing that the publication of the alleged libel caused any substantial let alone serious harm to his reputation.’
He said her claims had only been seen by eight individuals in South Africa ‘at most’ and only a ‘handful more in the UK’, adding: ‘There is no reason to allow the case to proceed if, as I conclude, it would be bound to fail.’
Of the allegations against Dr Simpson, he said ‘there have been no findings about any of these matters, and that this application does not involve making any find- ings or assumptions about their truth’. He also did not make any findings about Professor Mundell’s allegations of collusion involving the university.
Dr Simpson, who is now working at the Gemini Observatory in Hawaii, said: ‘I am sure my disappointment at Mr Justice Warby’s ruling is shared by all members of the Astrophysics Research Institute who had to endure Professor Mundell’s unpleasant behaviour.
‘There is not a shred of evidence to support any of the allegations made against me and I refute them entirely. Her malicious and unfounded allegations against Professor Bode and other members of staff were retaliation against her own misconduct allegations.’
Professor Bode said he would appeal against the court’s decision. Professor Mundell’s representative said it would be inappropriate to comment at the present time.
In a statement, solicitors acting for LJMU said: ‘LJMU takes the safety and well-being of its staff very seriously. It has robust and well- publicicsed anti- bullying and harassment, whistleblowing, discipline and grievance procedures in place which ensure that students and staff know how to raise concerns, which can be investigated and addressed promptly and effectively’