So reports the N.Y. Times (Mark Arsenault) yesterday, discussing former MIT cellular biology professor David Sabatini's victory on the defamation claim (and defendant's loss on her harassment and retaliation counterclaim).
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Times → report → counterclaim
[Sabatini] was forced out of his lab in 2021 after an internal Whitehead [Institute] investigation concluded he had a past sexual relationship with a younger and less experienced colleague, Kristin Knouse, over whom he had a career-influencing role.
asserted
he → force → role
The investigation also found that his lab had maintained a sexualized atmosphere.
asserted
lab → find → atmosphere
Dr. Knouse said that the relationship was coerced.
asserted
relationship → say → ?
But Dr. Sabatini denied his lab had an improper atmosphere.
asserted
lab → deny → atmosphere
He maintained that his relationship with Dr. Knouse had been consensual and that Dr. Knouse had schemed to get him fired and disgraced after he became interested in another woman….
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he → maintain → woman
After he was pushed out of M.I.T. and the Whitehead, he had talks with New York University about a job.
asserted
he → push → job
But N.Y.U. staff members and students protested in the streets against his hiring in 2022, and the university did not hire him.
asserted
university → protest → him
In 2023, he was hired by the Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, in Prague, and later opened a Boston-area branch of that institute….
asserted
he → hire → institute
According to the Boston Globe (Madyline Swearing, Bryan Hecht & Tonya Alanez), "In 2023, New York hedge fund billionaire Bill Ackman and an anonymous donor pledged $25 million over five years to help Sabatini get back into science."
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Sabatini → accord → science
The Globe also reports that the jury consisted of "seven women and six men," for whatever that's worth.
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that → report → women
Here's an excerpt of what Sabatini alleged (quoting a Massachusetts appellate decision in the case, later reversed as to Knouse's counterclaim by the Massachusetts high court):
Sabatini and Knouse met in 2012.
asserted
met → allege → 2012
At the time, Sabatini was a tenured member of the department of biology at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and ran his own laboratory at Whitehead, a research institute affiliated with MIT that receives funding from private resources such as the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) and public resources such as the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
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that → run → Health
{As pertinent here, Whitehead and HHMI have a relationship whereby HHMI provides funding for, and in some instances employs, individuals working at Whitehead.
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HHMI → have → Whitehead
At all relevant times, both Whitehead and HHMI employed Sabatini.
asserted
Whitehead → employ → Sabatini
In addition, NIH provided grants that funded Sabatini's research at Whitehead.
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that → provide → Whitehead
Knouse was enrolled in an inter-institutional M.D./Ph.D. program at Harvard and MIT, where Sabatini was one of her instructors and served on her thesis committee.
asserted
Sabatini → enrol → committee
While Knouse was a doctoral student, she and Sabatini sometimes socialized.
asserted
she → socialize → ?
Then, in 2018, Knouse started a fellowship at Whitehead, and she and Sabatini began a sexual relationship.
asserted
she → start → relationship
While the relationship ended in 2019, Knouse sent text messages to Sabatini in January 2020 seeking to rekindle their relationship.
asserted
Knouse → end → relationship
Sabatini responded, asking Knouse to stop and stating that he wanted peace and needed space to figure things out.
asserted
he → respond → things
In early 2020 through the fall of 2020, Knouse began telling colleagues, both at Whitehead and MIT, that Sabatini had sexually harassed her.
asserted
Sabatini → begin → her
In October 2020, Knouse reported the alleged sexual harassment to Lehmann.
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Knouse → report → Lehmann
Around that time, Whitehead hired a consultant to conduct a diversity survey at Whitehead.
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Whitehead → hire → Whitehead
During the survey, some Whitehead employees reported concerns about Sabatini.
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employees → report → Sabatini
In response, Whitehead hired the law firm of Hinckley, Allen & Snyder LLP (HAS) to investigate the culture within Sabatini's laboratory.
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Whitehead → hire → laboratory
The HAS investigators spoke with Knouse and other members of the Whitehead community.
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investigators → speak → community
In interviews with the HAS investigators, Knouse repeated her allegations that Sabatini had sexually harassed her.
asserted
Sabatini → repeat → her
On August 13, 2021, HAS sent a report to Whitehead finding that Sabatini had committed sexual harassment.
asserted
Sabatini → send → harassment
Whitehead forwarded the report to MIT and HHMI.
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Whitehead → forward → MIT
On August 19, Whitehead provided Sabatini with a copy of the report.
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Whitehead → provide → report
On August 20, Sabatini resigned after learning that Whitehead was about to terminate his employment.
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Whitehead → resign → employment
{Before Sabatini resigned, his coemployer at Whitehead, HHMI, terminated his employment.
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coemployer → resign → employment
MIT placed Sabatini on leave.
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MIT → place → leave
And here's what Knouse alleged (quoting the Massachusetts high court decision); the jury verdict suggests that the jury largely believed Sabatini's story rather than Knouse's:
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jury → allege → story
Sabatini was a laboratory director at the Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research (Whitehead) and a tenured professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in 2012 when he met Knouse, then a graduate student at Harvard University and MIT.
asserted
he → meet → University
Sabatini was one of Knouse's instructors at MIT and served on her dissertation committee.
asserted
Sabatini → serve → committee
During a discussion in 2016 concerning whether Sabatini would endorse Knouse's application for an upcoming fellowship at Whitehead, Sabatini expressed concern that Knouse took herself too seriously and asked Knouse whether she ever had "fun," "fuck[ed] around," or had sex.
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she → concern → sex
Knouse responded that she did have fun and quickly left the conversation.
asserted
she → respond → conversation
Subsequently, Sabatini recommended Knouse for the fellowship and supported her grant application, both of which she secured.
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she → recommend → which
…and 16 more, not listed.
The Aporia
