Harvard Denies Responsibility For Ho Death

In papers filed Wednesday in Middlesex County Superior Court, the University denied that it is legally liable for the death of Trang Phuong Ho '96, according to University attorney Allan A. Ryan Jr.

Ho was killed in her Dunster House room by her roommate, Sinedu Tadesse '96, in June 1995. Tadesse then hanged herself.

In a suit filed last month, the Ho family charges that Tadesse had previously demonstrated desperate and antisocial behavior about which the University knew or should have known.

The University will now enter a period of discovery with the plaintiff--the Ho family--in which both sides will exchange documents and compile depositions.

"It's a period of time for both sides to see what the case is all about, see what evidence is there," Ryan said.

"It's normal and expected for a defendant to deny liability," he said. "But that does not preclude reassessment of one's position after more evidence becomes available."