A fourth-year student at the UCSF School of Medicine is alleging that the university is retaliating against him for reporting incidents of sexual misconduct by a faculty member.
The complaint was filed on Feb. 24 by John H. Shen-Sampas, and the suit names both UCSF and the Regents of the University of California as defendants.
Shen-Sampas alleges that Mark Ratcliffe, a professor at the School of Medicine, sexually harassed him and coerced him to “make certain statements with respect to their research work.”
Shen-Sampas says that “on or around” Nov. 11, he reported sexual misconduct by Ratcliffe to the university’s Title IX office. He then states that in early December, a “student conduct officer” contacted Shen-Sampas and told him that he was accused of “untruthful statements regarding his research work with Mark Ratcliffe,” according to the complaint.
Measnwhile, Shen-Sampas reached out to the Piedmont Police Department around Dec. 20 and was interviewed by a detective about Ratcliffe and the potential for sexual harassment charges. But in mid-January, he says he received another message from UCSF’s student conduct officer. He claims the officer “stated that she believed statements made by Mark Ratcliffe rather than Plaintiff,” and recommended Shen-Sampas’ dismissal from UCSF.
The subsequent effort to notify UCSF’s Title IX compliance office with an allegation of retaliation went unanswered, the complaint says. In addition, Shen-Sampas says he received a message from the National Resident Matching Program, which places medical students in residency programs around the country, stating that he was under investigation for his statements about Ratcliffe.
“As a result of the retaliatory act, Plaintiff’s prospect of matching into a residency program has been severely damaged,” the complaint states.
Mark Goldrosen, counsel for Ratcliffe, told Gazetteer that Shen-Sampas’ allegation of sexual misconduct has no basis in truth: “Mark Ratcliffe has been a dedicated and respected academic and physician for decades,” Goldrosen said.
Goldrosen claimed that Shen-Sampas was already being investigated by UCSF for false statements made in the latter’s residency application, regarding the scope of his research with Ratcliffe. Shen-Sampas’ complaint against Ratcliffe only came after that investigation began, potentially to avoid expulsion from UCSF, Goldrosen said.
UCSF spokesperson Kristen Bole declined to comment “on personnel issues” in an email to Gazetteer SF. Shen-Sampas and the Piedmont Police Department did not respond to requests for comment.
Editor’s note: We’ve updated the story with a response from Mark Goldrosen, counsel for UCSF professor Mark Ratcliffe.
