CHAPEL HILL – The UNC student who has been at the forefront of rallies on campussupporting sexual assault victims and a change in how the University handles the cases has filed a federal complaint against the University.

According to multiple sources, Landen Gambill’s lawyer Henry Clay Turner told UNC Chancellor Holden Thorp in a letter that Gambill has filed the complaint with the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights. The letter asks that the Honor Court charges against Gambill be dropped.

This is the third complaint filed with the OCR; it’s also investigating UNC for the handling of sexual assault cases after Gambill and several other women including former assistant dean for students Melinda Manning, and for possible Clery Act violations. The Clery Act is a federal law that requires campuses to disclose crime statistics.

The Honor Court charges Gambill’s lawyer has asked to be dropped were made by her ex-boyfriend whom she has not publicly named but accused of repeatedly sexually assaulting her. The ex-boyfriend filed the charges stating she engaged in disruptive or intimidating behavior against him. In the letter, Turner said Chancellor Thorp has the right and the responsibility to step in and dismiss the charges even though they are often handled by students and faculty.

Turner also stated that Gambill will not be participating in the Honor Court hearings because “the retaliatory charges against my client are inappropriate, unconstitutional, and utterly without merit.”

Gambill could face any range of punishment up to and including expulsion as the charges do not carry a specific penalty.