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Former Utah State University linebacker Torrey Green was headed for a career in the NFL, signing a free agent contract with the Atlanta Falcons in 2016, when those plans were abruptly halted as he became the subject of a rape investigation.

In October, the 22-year-old landed behind bars in connection with allegedly sexually assaulting five women in Logan. A preliminary hearing is scheduled to start Wednesday in Cache County's 1st District Court, where Green is charged with first-degree felony rape, first-degree felony aggravated kidnapping and second-degree felony forcible sexual abuse.

Green's story played out first on the pages of The Salt Lake Tribune, but it fast joined an alarming national conversation about sexual assaults on college campuses. The stories are numerous, taking place at both private and public universities of all sizes. Baylor University is facing a lawsuit alleging that 31 of the school's football players committed 52 rapes between 2011 and 2014. Florida State University was at the epicenter of the documentary film "The Hunting Ground," which examined the investigation of Jameis Winston, the 2013 Heisman Trophy Winner, for sexually assaulting a female student in 2012. The University of Minnesota was embroiled in a controversy before a bowl game in December, when 10 players were suspended because of allegations of sexually assaulting a female student.

And the headlines keep emerging.

The details of the assaults are horrifying. Also unsettling is the broader question: Who else knew about the behavior and what did they do to stop it?

Did coaches know? Did university administrations know? Did teammates, friends and classmates perpetuate rape culture by not speaking up? What is the role of the bystander in these terrible situations?

As the opening arguments for Green's preliminary hearing unfold in Logan, the University of Utah S.J. Quinney College of Law on March 31 will host a free, daylong symposium designed to explore the role of the bystander in historical events, like the Holocaust, but also reflect on the role of the bystander in the world today. Three panels with leading academics and professionals will address the legal and moral obligations of the bystander. The first panel will consider the bystander during the Holocaust, the second panel will consider the bystander with respect to modern day war crimes, and the third panel will consider the bystander during sexual assaults.

The topic has never been more timely. Whether it's changing rape culture, watching the escalating refugee crisis and observing other humanitarian crises transpire across the globe, launching a conversation about the role of bystanders is essential.

Some legal scholars suggest creating laws that punish bystanders for remaining complacent. But creating legal liability for bystanders has its own set of complex issues. Alternatively, it may be possible to identify and encourage trends towards a middle ground between the current state of bystanding and imposing legal obligations to act. We can be more cognizant as a society of our fellow humans. We can work to foster a stronger moral compass in our youth.

Whatever we do, right now too many of us are content to do nothing while crimes are perpetrated against our fellow humans. We don't have to look far into our past to discover that when society is content to dim the lights and shut the curtains, unimaginable horrors can be inflicted on vulnerable populations.

Untangling the moral and legal obligations of the bystander is challenging, but joining the intriguing conversation is a start. Members of the community are invited to join the discussion. For more information, visit: http://www.law.utah.edu/event/law-review-symposium-the-bystander-dilemma/

Scott Phelan is a law student and co-organizer of "The Bystander Dilemma: The Holocaust, War Crimes, And Sexual Assaults" at the University of Utah S.J. Quinney College of Law March 31.