Stanford's Academic Council ruled last month that Adolf Pfefferbaum, a 22-year veteran of the Palo Alto Veterans Administration Hospital known for his research on schizophrenia, flouted school policy when he quit the hospital in 1996 due to what he called "intolerable" working conditions. He asked to move to the university's medical school, where he had a joint appointment. The university refused, arguing that he had lost his protected post when he left the VA, his primary employer (Science, 3 October 1997, p. 27). After Pfefferbaum sued, a judge ordered him reinstated pending a university inquiry, completed recently. In its report, the council concluded that Pfefferbaum--now the head of psychiatry at SRI International in Menlo Park, California--had failed to prove a "hostile" working environment and had no right to "unilaterally" change his academic duties. Although President Gerhard Casper wanted to fire the errant professor for neglect of duty--and made it clear that he will not tolerate similar gambits by other academics--the council recommended leniency. It suspended Pfefferbaum for 3 years and ordered him to pay a $20,000 fine if he wants to come back to campus. The decision helps clarify what constitutes a "reasonable academic assignment," says Stanford statistician Bradley Efron, one of the report's authors.

Pfefferbaum's attorney, former California congressman Pete McCloskey, says his client has not yet indicated whether he will return to Stanford. Meanwhile, McCloskey says he will ask a judge to overturn Stanford's "unconscionable" action when he goes to court on related litigation in September. He adds: "We have not yet begun to fight."