University of Colorado suspends chancellor; AD and head coach ordered to make donations as investigations into Joe Tumpkin case are completed

Tumpkin’s ex-girlfriend said that Tumpkin, a former defensive backs coach with CU, repeatedly abused her over a two-year period in a Sports Illustrated story that ran in February.
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A lawsuit claims Colorado football coach Mike MacIntyre, above, did nothing when a woman communicated to him that one of his former assistants, Joe Tumpkin, was physically abusing her. (Soobum Im/USA Today Sports)

The investigations into the University of Colorado's handling of domestic violence allegations made against former assistant football coach Joe Tumpkin are complete.

Colorado chancellor Phil DiStefano will serve a 10 day-suspension, while Colorado athletic director Rick George and head football coach Mike MacIntyre will each be required to make $100,000 donations to a fund "addressing domestic violence issues."

The report by the law firm WilmerHale concluded, among other things, that CU failed to report Tumpkin's alleged abuse of his ex-girlfriend to law enforcement officials.

Tumpkin's ex-girlfriend said that Tumpkin, a former defensive backs coach with CU, repeatedly abused her over a two-year period in a Sports Illustrated story that ran in February.

The physical abuse began soon after Tumpkin accepted a job with CU in February 2015, the Sports Illustrated story said. The woman detailed how Tumpkin "choked me, threw me up against the wall and bit me in the face" during one alleged incident.

The woman said she first told CU about Tumpkin's alleged abuse on Dec. 9. Nevertheless, Tumpkin was allowed to continue coaching — and even received a promotion when CU allowed him to call defensive plays in the Buffaloes' Dec. 29 Alamo Bowl game — after MacIntyre was made aware of the allegations.

“When she reached out to me, my first concern — which I shared with her — was for her safety," MacIntyre said in a statement. "I immediately reported to the athletic director for direction. All of us involved have learned that we have additional reporting responsibilities, and we will follow those procedures in the future."

CU announced Tumpkin's suspension on Jan. 9. Tumpkin was asked to resign later that month, and did.

The WilmerHale report concluded that DiStefano, George and MacIntyre, who were all aware of the alleged domestic violence, "should have known" they were responsible for reporting the allegations to CU's Title IX Coordinator.

“MacIntyre and George also should have known that they were contractually required to report Tumpkin’s alleged conduct to law enforcement," the WilmerHale report said. 

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