By Ronny Reyes and Carl Campanile | New York Post
A Stanford University dean who confronted a Trump-appointed judge after he was heckled by students during a speaking event has finally resigned months after being suspended for the incident.
Tirien Steinbach, the Stanford Law School’s associate dean for diversity, equity and inclusion, is leaving “to pursue another opportunity,” Stanford Law Dean Jenny Martinez said in a statement Thursday.
Steinbach has been marred in controversy and put on leave following viral video of her blasting Judge Stuart Kyle Duncan during his visit to the prestigious university in March.
“Associate Dean Steinbach and I both hope that SLS can move forward as a community from the divisions caused by the March 9 event,” Martinez said.
“The event presented significant challenges for the administration, the students and the entire law school community.”
In the message to the community, Martinez admitted, again, that the school failed to act appropriately when students protested against Duncan for a ruling denying a transgender prisoner’s request to have their pronouns changed in 2020.
“We hope your daughters get raped,” the students yelled at the judge while holding signs that read “FED SUCK,” as Duncan yelled back at the mob of about 100 students.
Steinbach then went to the podium to call Duncan’s work “abhorrent” and it “literally denies the humanity of people.”
“Although Associate Dean Steinbach intended to de-escalate the tense situation when she spoke at the March 9 event, she recognizes that the impact of her statements was not as she hoped or intended,” Martinez said.
Ethics and Public Policy Center/Vimeo
“Both Dean Steinbach and Stanford recognize ways they could have done better in addressing the very challenging situation, including preparing for protests, ensuring university protocols are understood, and helping administrators navigate tensions when they arise. There are opportunities for growth and learning all around,” she added.
Cherise Trump, executive director of Speech First — an organization that has represented students’ right to free speech against colleges — told The Post Steinbach’s leave was a long-time coming.
“We are thrilled to see Dean Tirien Steinbach is being held accountable for her actions. She made it clear she does not believe in such principles as open discourse and free speech,” said Trump, who is not related to the former president.
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“These key principles are vital to a college education as well as to our legal system. The day Steinbach violated campus free speech policies and led an angry mob to shout down a sitting judge simply because she did not like his views, was the day she told the country that Stanford Law School has a much lower hiring standard than we knew.”
Steinbach could not be immediately reached for comment.
News of Steinbach’s departure comes one day after Stanford President Marc Tessier-Lavigne announced he would resign, citing an independent review that cleared him of research misconduct but found flaws in other papers authored by his lab.
Tessier-Lavigne says he’s stepping down because he expects continued debate about his ability to lead the university, but he will remain on the faculty as a biology professor.
