Michigan State suspended Professor Brendan Doyle after discovering his previous conviction for operating a METH lab
- Brendan Doyle was recently hired as a professor at Michigan State before he was suspended
- Students became suspicious, dug into his past and found out that he was charged with running a meth lab in 2020
A Michigan State University kinesiology professor has been suspended after students found his previous conviction for running a meth lab.
Brendan Doyle was indicted in Louisiana in 2020 for creating or operating a clandestine laboratory for the illegal manufacture of a controlled dangerous substance.’
He pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 180 days behind bars, but only served 90.
Doyle was hired by the Big 10 University for the fall semester, but was quickly suspended after his erratic behavior in class led some students to delve into his past.
MSU officials claimed the professor passed a background check before he was hired and his arrest was uncovered.
A Michigan State University kinesiology professor was suspended after students found his previous conviction for running a meth lab
Students said he often canceled class at short notice, raising suspicions.
Mackenzie Albee, who was one of Doyle’s students at Michigan State, recounts Fox 17: ‘When I joined the GroupMe for homework help, I saw there was an article about him. It had the picture of my professor.’
“He was just erratic and he just seemed impatient,” Albee said.
He appeared in a Lafourche Parish Sheriff’s Office press release and in articles detailing his involvement in a meth lab in Thibodaux, Louisiana.
He was previously employed at Nicholls State University in Thibodaux before his arrest in 2020.
On March 27, 2020, a person discovered a bucket and garbage bag under a bridge and decided to report it to the authorities.
‘Deputies and narcotics arrived on scene and confirmed the presence of items commonly associated with the manufacture of methamphetamine. Agents determined that the smoke was caused by chemical reactions that were still taking place at the time. The items have been safely processed and neutralized,’ said the Sheriff’s Office press release.
In January 2021, Doyle was jailed for his role in manufacturing the drug.
MSU officials claimed he passed a background check before students discovered his arrest
When students found out about his previous arrest, Michigan State expelled him from the kinesiology department.
The head of the kinesiology department – the study of human body movement – reached out to his students and formally apologized.
“When he yelled at us like we were a high school class for talking, I just thought it was kind of unnecessary; like, when it happens in other classes at MSU, the professors don’t really make a big deal out of it; they just keep teaching the lecture. It was more distracting when he was yelling at us than the actual talking,’ Allbee said.
It is unclear whether Doyle was paid, and how much, for the semester. A temporary educator took over his classes.
‘Even if his involvement was minimal, how did this happen? How did they see past that, or not know at all?’ Allbee said.