Academia, Criminal law, Media, Society, Torts

UCLA Professor Dies During BDSM “Mummification” Game

Doran-George-e1464300730957-280x280Ucla_logoThe death of UCLA Professor Doran George, 48, has shaken the university after he was found dead during a bondage session at the home of a Hollywood executive Skip Chasey.  Chasey is known as Master Skip in the BDSM (Bondage, Discipline, Dominance and Submission) community.  George, who insisted on being called by the pronoun “their” rather than “he” or “she”, was found wrapped “head to toe in plastic wrap and gaffer’s tape, with small breathing holes at the nose and mouth.”  George died in something called the “mummification” sex play.

George, who was born Duncan Gilbert, taught in the UCLA disability studies and LGBT studies programs.  George received a PhD in Culture and Performance, UCLA Department of World Arts and Culture, a MA in Feminist Performance, University of Bristol, United Kingdom, and a BA in Experimental Dance, Hogeschool voor de Kunsten Arnhem, Holland.

George was found in a room made out as a dungeon with  padded floor tiles, a metal cage and a padded examination table for BDSM play.  A “Kinky site” defines mummification as:

“an advanced form of bondage in which a person is partially or fully cocooned in materials such as plastic wrap, a body bag, plaster, bondage tape, duct tape, bandages, pallet wrap, vet wrap or other medical wraps. This process leaves the body completely restricted and immobilized.”

Thus far, there is no finding of the cause of death and Chasey is not yet charged.  The case could raise difficult questions about consensual harm.  It seems likely that this was a consensual sexual encounter and one assumes risks when engaging in something called mummification. However, there is also the question of negligence and the failure to monitor such BDSM play.

There is also an interesting media element to the story.  George appears to have preferred that people use “their” rather than “him” or “her.”Alicia Gaspar de Alba, a UCLA professor,  informed colleagues

“Those of you who had the honor of taking this course or being in one of Doran’s discussion sections know that their heart was as big as their laugh, and that their dedication to social justice was informed by their own queer immigrant experience.”

Publications like the Hollywood Reporter used “he” while others seemed to try to use George without pronouns.

This gray area (indeed 50 Shades of Gray) between criminality and consent is evident in the case involving NXIVM founder Keith Raniere and Smallville actress Allison Mack  who have been accused of running a sex slave cult.   A criminal complaint alleged some women members were ordered to have sex with Raniere, or risk having their nudes released to the public.  That obviously negates consent but there remains a murky line in such cases.

 

67 thoughts on “UCLA Professor Dies During BDSM “Mummification” Game”

  2. I don’t feel sorry for Doran. He was obviously a sex freak and the world is overrun with sex freaks. I think obsessive behavior is what is at the root of much of it.

    I wonder if at any point during his history of this nonsense, he ever had the thought that what he was doing was stupid, and freaky. I don’t wonder what would have happened if his proclivities had become public before his death. Nothing would have happened. He would have been treated as a normal person. Now, if his perversion was dressing up like Robert E Lee. . .

    Squeeky Fromm
    Girl Reporter

  4. Darren,

    My comment will not post. As far as I can tell it does not contain any wrong words. It says it posted but doesn’t show up.

    Would you please be able to check into this for me? Thank you.

  5. I’m offended that danger an death can be a result of what I want to do. Surely there is a government program that can eradicate that.

  6. Duncan Gilbert may want to be called by some other pronoun but dead is the name this sexual deviant has earned. What are the odds dead never attempted to lure any of dead’s students and other faculty to this sexual underworld.

    Right about now I pray parents of students attending a university anywhere undertake an in-depth review of the academic programs and faculty at these schools and remove their child when they discover anything they wouldn’t want financially supported.

    1. It’s a state school. It’s the responsibility of the legislature to insist on repairs. It is the responsibility of the public to remove any impediments to repair that exist in the state constitution.

      1. And in the meantime, take their child out of the school. That does not require a parent to wait for any legislative fix.

  7. On the positive side, we can be grateful that these people are not breeding.

    1. Wally Moran – I have homosexual friends who have children and grandchildren. They do breed. 😉

        1. Squeeky – both were married and had children before they came out. One was pretty much pushed into marriage because her parents thought she was a lesbian and thought marriage would settle her down. I really don’t know the background on the other, just that she has kids and grandkids.

          1. There was a study in England which found that 85% of “Lesbians” were having sex with men at the same time they were having Lesbian sex. Which begs the question, are most Lesbians really even lesbians at all???

            Squeeky Fromm
            Girl Reporter

            1. Darn good thing I read my comment before posting, because it originally read “85% of “Lesbians” were having sex with me at the same time they were having Lesbian sex. ”

              Squeeky Fromm
              Girl Reporter

              2. You should have posted it that way, Squeeks. Nutchacha’s head would have exploded!! 🙂

            2. Not sure your numbers are right, but it is true that unadulterated lesbianism is quite unusual – characteristic of maybe 0.5% of the female population. It’s quite different from male homosexuality.

              1. I am looking for a cite to the English study, but the numbers appear to hold up. Here is a study from Australia where the rate is 93%. The whole point of both studies was that Doctors should not presume because a patient said she was a Lesbian, that she wasn’t also having sex with men. They had been making that presumption, and not checking their patients out for various forms of STDs and things.

                https://abcnews.go.com/Health/story?id=117877&page=1

                Squeeky Fromm
                Girl Reporter

            3. Squeeky – there are/were a lot of gay men who were married to women and had children. Were they really gay? Yes, they were looking for a beard.

              1. Squeeky – there are/were a lot of gay men who were married to women and had children.

                There are very few.

                2. I don’t know the number but I would be very suspicious of any number provided. Married men don’t necessarily admit they are gay and there is a spectrum of sexuality among men. Check the prison population where access to females is limited or non existent.

                  1. the whole guys get gay in prison thing is over-stated by people who don’t know anything about prison. most prisoners if they are not gay they do not act gay in prison. that’s reality, not hollywood garbage

                    1. It is not a matter of being gay. There is a spectrum and when isolated attitudes can change.

                      “For example, individuals on the outside have the freedom to participate in heterosexual relationships at their leisure. As incarceration only allows the cohabitation of oth- ers of the same sex, many inmates choose to participate in homosex- ual relationships, an activity that is banned in prison.” from “Sex in Prison: Myths and Realities”

              2. True, but somehow they managed to get an erection, ejaculate, and presumably often enough to make babies. Or, they used a turkey baster or some other form of cheating. My GUESS is, they just had sex, and opted for gay sex simply because they liked it better than normal sex.

                Personally, I don’t buy the whole “I don’t have any choice” meme. They may prefer same-sex sex, the same way some people prefer “penis-high-heel-shoe sex”, or “wrap-my-stupid-a$$-up-in-latex-cocoons sex” but they have a choice.

                Squeeky Fromm
                Girl Reporter

                    1. Squeeky – I am happily married. Don’t start trouble. 😉

  10. UCLA Professor George joined actors like Rock Hudson & David Carradine who were consumed by the lust of their flesh.

  13. When I first read this on Drudge I wasn’t sure how to respond to it and I still am not sure. Is their an idiot, yes their is!!!

  14. I’m going to say that when you bind someone with plastic wrap with little tiny air holes, there is a good chance they are going to smother. For two well educated people, they didn’t show much common sense. The plastic wrap would inhibit the expansion of the rib cage, and lead to overheating. When you overheat, your heart beats faster, requiring more oxygen, which makes you breathe harder. The restrictive wrap would inhibit that. The tiny air holes weren’t enough for ventilation, obviously. I’m an asthmatic. What kind of maniac would deliberately make anyone breathe through a restricted airway on purpose, for “fun”? I’m also wondering what the heck the Skipper was doing if he didn’t notice his victim in distress, passing out, and finally expiring. Was George also gagged so he couldn’t cry out for help? Or did he get lightheaded right away and pass out before he realized he needed help?

    In biology, gender is biological and different from behavior or presentation. George was a non monogamous gay man showing feminine behavior. His partner described how they would giggle about George’s upcoming dates with Master Skip, who would treat him like a dog in “pup play.” So on those days, George displayed canine behavior, but he was not a biological dog. He was a human being who did not deserve to smother to death because the sexual partner he trusted failed to take care of him. Maybe, he would have been better off finding a monogamous soul mate who treasured him, instead of confusing pleasure with pain and victimhood.

    What has bearing on any criminal charges is George’s history of “performance art”, which included him being wrapped up tightly and then bricked into a mausoleum. He also burst through a chrysalis of some other restrictive material. Whatever Skip persuaded him to do at the end, he had a proclivity for being severely restrained and put into life threatening situations. It shows a pattern of voluntary behavior.

    I actually wouldn’t charge Skip with a crime. This was not a coercive brainwashing cult. Although an accident was inevitable, these were two consenting adults in a long term relationship. George’s partner described how he sought out Skip as the best possible person to explore the submissive BDSM side of his personality. In addition, George’s record of performance art indicates that he voluntarily engaged in similar life threatening restrictive situations. Oh, that reminds me. Why isn’t BDSM or polygamy included in the self identifying questions on the LSAT? They really do need to have bathrooms that accommodate multiple adults at a time.

    Self destructive and terribly sad. Let this serve as a cautionary tale. I don’t care what Hollywood says. BDSM has no self respect or mutual adoration, and when taken to the extreme, it’s dangerous. If you feel the overwhelming need to be wrapped from head to toe and then left for hours, or be treated like a literal dog, see a psychiatrist; don’t seek out the best person to help you realize your dream. See DSM-5. This is another example of mainstreaming completely self destructive behavior. However, that said, as long as they don’t hurt anybody, what consenting adults do is nobody’s beeswax.

    1. Karen, I’m impressed. You nailed the important elements of this tragic story with legitimate arguments and explanation. At the same time, you demonstrated a reverence for our human existence.

      I am certain the coroner will concur as to the cause of death and no serious charges will be filed.

      1. Allan – I had a theatre professor who fell out a window during a rehearsal. He was sitting on the open sill and leaned back too far. Then, when they went to check on him in the emergency room, he came out and walked into a pillar. He survived both accidents. Just because you have a Ph.D. does not mean you are not going to do dumb things. 😉

        1. Paul, the brain is an incredible organ. Sometimes a functional loss in one area will be matched with a gain in another. Saturday the WSJ had an interesting article on Strange Brains and along with other things it discussed developmental topographical disorientation disorder.

        2. Paul – what a close call!

          I have absolutely seen the Absentminded Professor Syndrome up close and personal.

          1. I had a math professor who was totally dysfunctional. His thesis was rejected at Oxford(?), but someone sent it to the US and with the use of computers proved him correct. It was said that only a few mathematicians could understand what he wrote. He taught because those were the rules (I switched classes), but he came to class late and one could see what he had eaten for breakfast the past week on his tie and clothes. He had to have a grad student help him with almost everything.

  16. Somehow I’m not touched (eew – wrong word!)…..Start over: Somehow I’m not effected by his “queer immigrant experience.” Build the wall!

    1. TIN
      Still using the wrong word! Evidently you were affected by the “deviant’s experience”. The effect was that you adamantly insist that a wall be built. I’m not sure whether you mean figuratively or literally.

  17. I wonder if the cause of death will be compressive asphyxia resulting from the wrap being too tight and if so the breathing holes might be useless so perhaps it could be ruled an accident if the actors believed the holes would be sufficient for breathing.

    1. I’ll bet you’re right. Women used to faint from tight lacing in the days of corseting, especially when the afternoon got hot. Their friends or servants would immediately loosen her laces. In a full body wrap, the lower diaphragm wouldn’t be free to move, nor the upper chest. It would be tight lacing from head to toe.

      People get smothered when they get rolled into rugs as a prank, or fall headfirst into a duct. They get wedged in there, can’t take a deep breath, and expire before they are found.

  18. For someone who lived and worked in California he certainly wasn’t environmentally conscious. Plastic wrap? Really? That can take up to 425 years to decompose.

    1. After all, this is the state that has prohibited businesses from providing their customers with a free plastic shopping bag. Even if they want to give it away free, they are required to charge 10 cents a bag. The result is that a lot of people are reusing dirty bags, and the one the meat went in one week is the one the carrots go in the next. And a lot of people don’t use bags, and instead just pile all their stuff in the trunk, where it rolls around. Or they jam everything into one bag, that breaks. Plus, the poor are harder hit, having to pay for bags. The least educated are also the most vulnerable to food poisoning, if they don’t know you have to either segregate or clean the bags regularly.

  20. I’d like to suggest that for dying while male in a submissive role, that his MA in Feminist Performance be upgraded to Ph.D.

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