Timeline of Winthrop bait bike case

▪ Nov. 1, 2013: Two students were arrested around 1 a.m., accused of taking a Winthrop “bait bike.”

▪ Nov. 4: The male student’s mom called Campus Police, asking the department to drop her son’s charges. Emails show Chief Zebedis told her the school could not legally drop charges.

▪ Nov. 6: President Williamson’s Chief of Staff, Kimberly Faust – a university employee who also serves as the secretary to the Board of Trustees – sent an email to Chief Zebedis asking about the students’ arrest. No mention is made of dropping the charges. Williamson says Faust emailed Zebedis because she’d received phone calls from trustees.

▪ Nov. 18: The original Rock Hill court date was postponed after the students ask for a jury trial.

▪ December: Trustees discussed the bait bike case during meetings at Winthrop. Williamson says she expressed empathy for the students but explained that the university board and the administration should not interfere with court proceedings or on-campus disciplinary processes.

▪ Jan. 15, 2014: Bigham and Williamson discussed the bait bike case in person. Phone records show the two talked for five minutes afterward by phone. Williamson claims Bigham told her to get the charges dropped but Bigham denies that. Williamson says she raised a concern about giving the students special treatment. After speaking with Bigham, Williamson says she called Winthrop’s police chief to pass along the request.

▪ Jan. 17: Williamson followed up with Chief Zebedis by email and wrote, “I am sorry if I have asked you to compromise your values.”

▪ Jan. 18: Bigham and others at Winthrop are advised to step back from the case after Bigham asks Faust for information about which court official Zebedis spoke to about dropping the case.

▪ Feb. 26: Bigham sends another email to the president’s office, asking questions about other bait bike cases. In the email, she asks how many other cases are set for court on March 3, 2014 – the day the two Winthrop students are due to appear. Court officials said later that prosecutors agreed to drop the students’ charges but – as a matter of fairness – they also dismissed charges against two other people who had been arrested for stealing a bait bike.

▪ March 3: The day the students are to appear in court, Rock Hill prosecutor Paula Knox Brown sends an email to Chief Zebedis stating she will drop the students’ charges and two other cases to “be respectful of the decision reached between the Board of Trustees and the Winthrop Police Department in respect to declination of prosecution.” Zebedis wrote back: “I certainly don’t agree with the request that was made from the Winthrop administration, and I have expressed that concern.” He also said the Winthrop bait bike program “is very successful and prosecution of these cases are imperative to keep the program successful.” Bigham denies there was any decision or understanding between the board and the police department.

▪ April 23: Williamson says the bait bike case continued to come up among trustees even after the charges were dismissed. During a meeting, members of the board’s executive committee expressed relief that the case was dropped against the students. Related board conversations continued about whether it was appropriate for the university to have “zero-tolerance” with its students for minor crimes committed on campus.

▪ April 29: The charges against the students are formally expunged.

▪ May 20: The Herald began asking questions of Winthrop officials about the case and why the charges were dropped. Senior officials discuss the media inquiry with Williamson. Williamson claims Bigham was concerned and speculated to her a few days later about who “leaked” information to the newspaper about the case.

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This story was originally published July 18, 2015 at 5:54 PM with the headline "Timeline of Winthrop bait bike case."