Herman Veal, a junior forward on the University of Maryland basketball team, will be unable to compete in the Atlantic Coast Conference Basketball tournament starting Friday or in any NCAA competition this season, the university announced last night.
Dull's statement did not mention the fall semester or the community service report.
Veal, the team's second-leading rebounder, has been placed on disciplinary probation by a student judicial board for violating the university's Code of Student Conduct, sources said. The alleged incident, sources said, involved an unidentified female student and took place in October.
Although he did not play against Virginia Sunday, Veal has practiced with the Terrapins this week and Coach Lefty Driesell has said Veal will accompany the team to Atlanta for the ACC tournament, regardless of whether he is allowed to play.
Late last night, Dull issued the following statement: "The administrative action that has resulted in Herman Veal not being able to participate in intercollegiate basketball since Friday, March 4, has been reviewed at all appropriate levels of the College Park administration and has been confimed. Of immediate concern to the community, this action will not permit Herman Veal to participate in intercollegiate basketball for the remainder of the 1982-83 seaons. Any further comment is not permitted."
According to sources, the Residence Board of the student judicial system found on Jan. 7 that Veal had violated the code of conduct, placed him on a year's disciplinary probation covering the spring and fall semesters of 1983 (the fall semester ends in the middle of next December) and ordered him to perform 24 hours of community service.
Veal then appealed to the Appellate Board, which upheld the decision of the Residence Board. Then, according to sources, Veal appealed to William Thomas, vice chancellor for student affairs.
Last Friday, Thomas rejected Veal's second appeal, and the athlete was unable to play in Sunday's game against Virginia because of what at the time was called an administrative problem.
At a news conference Tuesday, Driesell said, "If I've got anything to do with it, he'll play Friday. Right now, it's out of my hands. But I've got a little bit of pull around here, and we'll see how much. That's all I'm going to say."
Driesell and Veal were unavailable for comment after last night's announcement.
Driesell's statement apparently angered the university's Women's Center, which last night issued a statement that said, in part, "We are outraged to learn that Coach Driesell is blatantly disregarding the judicial board's decision by attempting to allow Herman Veal to play on the team. This clearly conflicts with the administration's stance on the safety of campus women."
A member of the Women's Center said the group had been in touch with the woman claiming to have been involved in the alleged incident.
Thomas and other university and athletic department officials have declined comment on specifics concerning Veal, citing federal privacy statutes that forbid university employes from discussing a student's academic or disciplinary record.
Veal has declined comment, beyond saying that he hopes to have a prepared statement later in the week, that he wants to talk about the situation and that he has been told only to say it is an administrative problem.
The student judicial system is a voluntary program in which students apply for board positions. The program is directed by Gary M. Pavela, a lawyer, under the auspices of the office of the vice chancellor for student affairs. According to university publications and sources familiar with the student judicial system, Pavela conducts mock trials and accepts for board membership students who do well in the trials.
There are three boards: Residence, Central and Appellate. The Residence Board heard the Veal case originally because the alleged incident occurred in campus housing.
Pavela was unavailable for comment.
