Married top mathematician Joshua Ross is cleared of sexually harassing University of Adelaide lecturer Dr Giang Thu Nguyen after judge finds she wasn’t too drunk to consent to sex

A married academic whose work helped shape South Australia’s response to Covid-19 has been cleared of sexually harassing a fellow academic.

Senior lecturer Dr Giang Thu Nguyen sued Professor Joshua Ross and the University of Adelaide for $1 million after claiming she was too drunk to consent to a one-night stand the two men shared following an academic conference in November 2019.

But his case was dismissed by South Africa’s Civil and Administrative Tribunal on Wednesday, with senior member Jacqui Rugless ruling that Dr Nguyen had failed to prove that Professor Ross’s conduct was “unwelcome”, reported The advertiser.

“(They) actively and regularly drank a lot of alcohol at both locations (and) engaged in flirtatious conduct,” Ms Rugless said.

“(They) then engaged in consensual sexual intercourse initiated by Dr. Nguyen, who was enthusiastic throughout

“The evidence is consistent with consensual but uninhibited conduct between two intelligent, mature, sexually and socially experienced individuals, with Dr. Nguyen experiencing regret and embarrassment after the event.”

“This is not consistent with sexual assault or unwelcome sexual conduct amounting to sexual harassment.”

“I reject Dr. Nguyen’s testimony that she did not consent to, solicit or invite the sexual encounter and that she found it unwelcome.”

Dr Nguyen, who worked with Professor Ross at the University of Adelaide’s School of Mathematical Sciences, was seeking $970,948 in damages, lost wages, rights and future expenses for alleged breaches of the Equal Opportunities Act.

She alleged she was too drunk to consent to sex in Professor Ross’s Stamford Grand Hotel room on Adelaide’s waterfront following a three-day Center of Excellence retreat from the Australian Council for Frontiers in Mathematics and Statistics in November 2019.

Dr Nguyen alleged she was too drunk to consent to sex in Professor Ross’ (pictured) Stamford Grand Hotel room on the Adelaide waterfront after the three-day Center of Excellence retreat Australian Council for Frontiers in Mathematics and Statistics in November 2019.

Dr Nguyen claimed she only had “memory flashes” after they and other colleagues spent the evening drinking together.

But Professor Ross always maintained the sex was consensual and claimed Dr Nguyen initiated it before later worrying that someone might tell his wife.

The court had earlier heard that Dr Nguyen woke up naked on the sofa in her hotel room where she promptly vomited.

She filed a complaint with the police, but they declined to charge Professor Ross after investigating.

Dr Nguyen also alleged the University of Adelaide failed to adequately investigate his complaint.

Dr Nguyen claimed she only had “memory flashes” after they and other colleagues spent the evening drinking together, but Professor Ross claimed it was she who initiated sexual relations.

The University of Adelaide stood by its findings that there was insufficient evidence to find sexual assault and said it would not be liable if it did so.

But Ms Rugless ruled in favor of Professor Ross who she said was a reliable witness, while Dr Nguyen was not.

Her testimony, Ms Rugless said, was “evasive” and contained “numerous inconsistencies”, demonstrating a “tendency to embellish or exaggerate”.

Ms Rugless said hotel CCTV footage showed Dr Nguyen was not even “slightly” affected by alcohol minutes before the sex.

“I am convinced that Dr. Nguyen’s account of the amount of alcohol she had consumed up to that point in the evening is simply not true,” Ms. Rugless said.

She added: “I accept that Dr Nguyen was upset, embarrassed and confused after the event… it is clear that she became obsessed and distressed by his lack of full recall.

“However, failure to fully recall does not equate to lack of consent.

“Furthermore, regret, embarrassment, or offense felt after the event does not turn previously welcome conduct into unwelcome conduct. »

Professor Ross was the lead modeler for SA Health’s Covid decision-making team, which helped shape decisions made on lockdowns, border closures and vaccinations.