Junior Dean says “no case to answer” in Sean Ryan sexual harassment allegations

Ryan dropped out of the TCDSU Presidential election following the publication of the allegations

Junior Dean Professor Tim Trimble has found that there is “no case to answer” regarding the sexual harassment complaints made against former Trinity College Dublin Students’ Union (TCDSU) Presidential candidate Sean Ryan. Trimble has closed the case.

In a Facebook status on his campaign page, Ryan said: “I would like to thank the Junior Dean’s office for their thorough investigation and my tutor for his guidance and assistance during the process.”

In a screenshot posted by Ryan, the email from Trimble read: “Following investigation of this complaint and review of the evidence presented; my decision is that there is no case to answer. This case is therefore closed with no further action.”

Ryan dropped out of the race after voting had closed following the allegations made by a woman to whom he had sent a racist comment and a series of sexually explicit Facebook messages and Snapchats. He previously rejected the allegations but said: “I nevertheless want to apologise unreservedly for any offence caused by my remarks as published in student publications. I do now understand that certain language I used in the past was inappropriate and has has fallen short of what is expected of a TCDSU President and what I expect of myself.”

If you have been affected by any of the issues in this article, you can contact these services:

TCD Counselling Service 01896 1407

Niteline.ie 1800 793 793

Welfare Officer: available to meet for support, [email protected]

DRCC: 1800 778 888

One in Four: (01) 6624070

This article was updated at 17:42 on 06/03/18 to reflect that the Junior Dean had found no case, rather than the complaint being dropped by the victim. 

Note: This article was edited at 23:01 on 20/11/18 in response to a legal complaint by Sean Ryan.

Niamh Lynch

Niamh was Editor of the 65th volume of Trinity News. She is a History and Politics graduate.