HUNTINGTON, W.Va. — A Cabell County circuit judge revoked the probation of expelled Marshall University student Chase Hardin Friday after hearing Hardin deny the new charges against him during sworn testimony.
Hardin took the stand Friday before Circuit Alfred Ferguson and said he didn’t sexually assault two Marshall students last year. He said the sex was consensual and he would be willing to take a lie detector test to prove it. The alleged assaults took place off-campus.
Hardin’s case has drawn a lot of attention because he was out on probation after a 2016 on-campus assault that he pleaded down to a misdemeanor battery. He was placed on three years probation. The new allegations put the probation in jeopardy.
Ferguson revoked the probation Friday and ordered Hardin to spend one year in jail on the previous battery conviction. He will get credit for 15 days previously served.
Hardin was arraigned on the new charges in June. He faces further court proceedings. Marshall expelled him from school in June.
“We have taken, and will continue to take, aggressive steps to make sure the entire Marshall community is safe. I have zero tolerance for inappropriate, illegal behavior, and pledge that we will always treat sexual misconduct and violence with the utmost gravity. The safety of our students is our first obligation,” Marshall President Jerome Gilbert said at the time.
The probation revocation hearing began July 9. One of Hardin’s accusers testified that day.
“I just tried to normalize what happened to me to avoid having to deal with the issue. I like separated it from my mind. That’s why me and him never talked about it,” the woman said.