An investigation into Eric Evangelista’s successful campaign for Student Association president found the campaign was not in violation of the SA bylaws or Constitution.

The Judicial Review Board’s (JRB) finding means that Evangelista and Joyce LaLonde, his running mate, will not be disqualified from serving as president and vice president, respectively, of SA’s 60th session, according to a statement released by the JRB.

The JRB also looked into conduct of several members of the Board of Elections and Membership (BEM) and ruled that two members, Paulina Colon and Obi Afriyie, were in violation of bylaws and will be dismissed from the BEM effective immediately, according to the statement. Colon and Afriyie will be permitted to stay in SA as assembly representatives. The JRB also ruled that BEM Chair Tracey Ford will be placed on probation in the fall.

The investigation was launched after complaints claiming violations by Evangelista’s campaign were filed by Zoe Malliaros, a junior in the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications. After holding hearings, the JRB found that Evangelista, LaLonde and co-campaign manager Keelan Erhard were not in violation of bylaws.

The statement does not note what specific accusations were made by Malliaros against Evangelista’s campaign, but among the “relevant excerpts of governing documents” outlined in the statement is bylaw 5.13.1, which says that campaigning in any on-campus computer cluster is prohibited during the voting period of a campus-wide election. During the week of the election, the Evangelista campaign was fined $10 after Erhard was caught campaigning in a computer cluster.

In its investigation of the BEM, the JRB was concerned that the BEM “did not follow the procedures outlined in the Constitution and the Bylaws pertaining elections, specifically, violation of elections regulations procedures.”

The statement released Tuesday night notes that Colon actively participated in last month’s elections, which was a violation because she was confirmed onto the BEM “on the condition that she would not be involved in anything pertaining to elections.” The violation was a joint mistake made by the BEM and Evangelista’s campaign, according to the statement, but the JRB ruled that Evangelista’s campaign was not at fault because it was instructed improperly by the BEM.

Colon “breached BEM’s confidentiality” by communicating information about a then-ongoing investigation by the BEM, according to the statement. Additionally, Afriyie was found to be in violation of SA’s Ethics code, which is considered a gross violation, according to the statement. Colon will be given a probationary period during the fall semester and will be in good standing “once the probation conditions set forth by JRB are met,” according to the statement.

Colon’s and Afriyie’s violations are also in violation of Syracuse University’s Code of Student Conduct, according to the statement.

Toward the end of the statement, the JRB writes that SA’s governing documents, including the Constitution and the bylaws “lack the clarity needed to efficiently meet the objectives of the Student Association and to enforce the rules and regulations effectively.”

“We, the Judicial Review Board look forward to collaboratively working with the President-elect, Vice President-elect, all committees and boards Chairs, and the Assembly to refine the Constitution and the Bylaws of the Syracuse University Student Association in order to represent the student body who entrusted us to better defend their rights, promote their interests and needs, and represent their voices effectively,” the JRB writes.

Published on May 11, 2016 at 12:32 am

Contact Michael: mdburk01@syr.edu