University of Virginia Library

GSU Considers Court Action
Against Visitors' Fund Denial

By MEG VINSON

The Gay Student Union
(GSU) may take court action
against the University
after it further evaluates the
Board of Visitors' denial of a
Student Council $45
allocation, GSU President
Larry W. Cress said yesterday.

Mr. Cress said the decision
will be made by the Executive
Board of the GSU and the
American Civil Liberties
Union, but "there is no terrible
hurry" in making that decision.

'Will Take Months'

"It will take months to get
it into court and the amount of
time, trouble and money" will
all have to be considered
before a final decision is
reached, Mr. Cress said.

Even so Mr. Cress said he
thought the GSU would lodge
suit against University officials.

Fourth-year student William
H. Hurd, who originally sought
the funding denial, said he will
go to court with the University
if the GSU sues.

Mr. Hurd said he "didn't see
how the GSU could sue the
University because they would
have no standing in court."

'Wisdom' Of Board

In response to Friday's
decision, Mr. Hurd said he was
"pleased and had great
confidence in the wisdom of
the Board."

He said it was "a landmark
decision in that academic
integrity was preserved" and
the students were now "free
from the coercions to which
Student Council would have
subjected them."

"I didn't intend to
challenge the Student
Allocation Fee itself, simply
prevent its misuse," Mr. Hurd
said.

In Mr. Hurd's opinion, "the
Board of Visitors was not
inconsistent because there had
been no previous ruling to
compare it to."

'Pretty Slick'

"Other organizations might
not deserve their funds," Mr.
Hurd stated, and "future
allocations ought to be looked
at carefully."

Referring to the allocation
refusal, Mr. Cress said "the
Board of Visitors was pretty
slick about getting out of it."

He said that no organization
has been subjected to the
Board's ruling, that it "has no
power to authorize a
disbursement of funds for
purpose unrelated to the
educational purposes of the
University."