Apparently double jeopardy doesn’t exist in college sexual assault litigation: an student at Amherst College is being forced into another misconduct hearing five years after he was first accused of unwanted sexual advances — a case his lawyer says was closed three years ago. And yet, his college is trying him for the same crime all over again, at the expense of his degree.

Andrew Desiderio at The College Fix reports:

Amherst College Denies Student Diploma Over 5-Year-Old Sexual Assault Claim

A student has sued Amherst College for denying him his diploma two weeks before graduation based on a nearly 5-year-old sexual assault allegation that his lawyer said was resolved three years ago.

John Doe, whose identity is being withheld by his lawyers, is a South African native who was accused of unwanted sexual advances on his Amherst College male roommate in December 2009.

Attorney Luke Ryan said his client took the last final exam of his college career nine weeks ago, expecting to “spend the next nine days celebrating and saying goodbye to friends in the lead up to commencement.”

Instead, Doe was informed that Amherst officials decided to subject him to additional discipline for the sexual assault allegation, which Ryan said was resolved in 2011.

Doe was told a misconduct board hearing had to take place before he could receive his degree. That hearing could come in October – at the earliest – because faculty and trustees have to vote on whether to confer him a degree, court documents state.

As a result, Doe’s life has effectively been put on hold.

“Our client is operating under an enormous amount of stress,” Ryan said in an interview with The College Fix.

Doe’s lawyers have asked the court to intervene and force campus officials to hand out the degree, but the university has responded that the court does not have jurisdiction in the matter.