Fraternities should not be held responsible for individual accidents - Cavalier Daily

An interesting opinion piece in the University of Virginia student paper.

"...as is often the case, missteps by one particular person or chapter increase hostility against fraternities nationwide. Other organizations do not face the same backlash."

The Cavalier Daily :: YAHANDA: Brotherly hate:

Fraternities should not be held responsible for individual accidents
by Alex Yahanda | Jan 21 14

News about Greek organizations generally focuses on what chapters do to get in trouble (search “fraternity” on Google news and the results are mostly negative). This disproportionately gloomy reporting reflects poorly on the chapters’ schools, which in turn leads to punishments that are system-wide overreactions to the conduct of individual houses. Last week, another nationwide news story broke in which a fraternity is being punished unfairly.

According to the Yale Daily News, 86 members of the school’s Sigma Phi Epsilon — nicknamed Sig Ep — chapter are being sued over an incident that occurred in 2011 at a Harvard-Yale football game. Before that game, a former student, Brendan Ross, struck three women with a U-Haul truck that he was driving to the fraternity’s tailgating location. One woman, Nancy Barry, was killed, and the other two were injured. But despite the fact that only one student caused the accident, an excessive number of brothers are now facing legal action.

Many writers whose articles were published last week took note of the fact that Sig Ep’s national chapter has distanced itself from its Yale unit. Its insurance does not cover actions that go against the national fraternity’s policies. Typically, a fraternity’s national organization is able to serve as a safety net to help members of chapters that finds themselves in trouble. With the liability that accompanies fraternities these days, though, it is not surprising that national organizations are hesitant to provide comprehensive insurance for chapters, preferring to save time and money by distancing themselves from those chapters that have participated in illicit activities. In reality, the Sig Ep national’s inaction is not particularly newsworthy. There are two larger injustices that occurred as a result of the U-Haul accident.

The first injustice is that 85 of Ross’ fellow Sig Ep brothers — a group including both former and current students — are now being implicated in a wrongful death suit. Barry’s death was unquestionably tragic. It could have been avoided had Ross been a more responsible driver. Ross deserves to face any appropriate consequences for his actions, and the victims of the accident should receive proper restitution. Implicating an entire fraternity as accomplices in the accident, however, is unfair. Ross alone was directly responsible for what occurred. Though he was driving fraternity supplies to a fraternity-sponsored event, the other fraternity members neither enabled the accident to occur nor should be held responsible for the consequences of Ross’ negligence. Members who were not even present at the tailgate have been swept up by the lawsuit simply for being in the same chapter. This kind of widespread punishment is entirely unreasonable, as there is nothing the fraternity as a whole did that was inherently wrong, irresponsible or worthy of mass legal action.

The second injustice is more glaring: Ross’ record does not reflect any sort of wrongdoing. After pleading guilty to two relatively small driving infractions, he was sentenced to enter a probation program. Four hundred hours of community service later, Ross emerged with no marks on his criminal history.

The Connecticut justice system should be receiving more anger than Yale’s Sig Ep chapter. To be sure, Ross’ life will not return to how it was before the accident. He will forever be associated with Barry’s death. But it makes little sense when someone can kill a person, injure two others and receive no real punishment, even if the event was accidental. Ross was fortunate in a way that other people may not be. His charges were downgraded so that he could benefit from the probation program. Barry’s family also agreed that the probationary program was adequate punishment, as Ross was apparently a good kid who felt “appropriately remorseful.” Despite the agreement between both sides, Ross’ record deserves some blemish. One should not be able to go from negligent homicide with a motor vehicle to community service that easily — and that should be the primary message of Ross’ accident.

Yet the U-Haul misfortune, just because it is associated with a fraternity, will augment anti-Greek sentiments throughout the country. The vast majority of drivers who kill or injure people every year are not associated with Greek life. But, as is often the case, missteps by one particular person or chapter increase hostility against fraternities nationwide. Other organizations do not face the same backlash. During my first year, for instance, a University student in my dorm was hit by a Safe Ride van. There was no national outrage at the University or the Safe Ride program for that accident, and it would have been absurd for that student to consider the entire Safe Ride program to be of lesser value because of the actions of one driver. The same idea holds for Ross’ situation. Nothing about being in a fraternity significantly influenced his accident — his job in the fraternity was to drive the truck, but the other brothers did not cause him to crash it. Individually suing Ross makes sense, but it is not necessary to blame Barry’s death on all 86 members of his fraternity.

Alex Yahanda is a senior associate editor for The Cavalier Daily.

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SigEp Headquarters Message regarding news coverage of Yale incident

This email was sent out today from SigEp Headquarters regarding the news earlier this week that 86 members of the Yale Chapter have been named in a lawsuit.

There was also a Press Release.

Email - Message regarding news coverage of Yale incident - Sigma Phi Epsilon Fraternity:

Dear Brothers and Friends, I am writing you in response to several news stories that have been published regarding members of our Yale chapter and the support our Fraternity has provided them in response to a recent lawsuit. Following an on-campus accident that occurred more than two years ago, lawyers recently filed suit against our Yale chapter as well as individual members. Contrary to recent media reports, the Fraternity has taken every possible action to procure coverage for our brothers at Yale by our insurance provider and provide the legal representation they need to be rightfully dismissed from this litigation. It is important to me that you know our brothers at Yale are protected and supported. The following press release was issued this morning in response to statements that SigEp was not providing support and coverage for our Yale members. If you have any questions about SigEp's risk management policies or our general liability insurance, please contact SigEp's risk management director,Kathy Johnston. Fraternally, Brian C. Warren Jr. Chief Executive Officer

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86 Sig Ep members sued over 2011 tailgate

An interesting way to attempt to recover damages from a chapter - suing each member individually. I have no comment on the facts of the case as I was not there. I would, however, like to see some commentary from the legal community about the reasoning, chance of success, and possible effect of this strategy. To my layman's eye it looks like some innocent members of the chapter could be subject to a civil and financial penalty simply because of  'guilt by association.' There is also the question of why the insurance coverage chapters must purchase does not apply in this case.

Update: SigEp Headquarters has issued a statement clarifying their support of the Yale chapter.
Also see this later blog post.

86 Sig Ep members sued over 2011 tailgate | Yale Daily News:

Eighty-six current and former members of the Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity at Yale are the targets of two new lawsuits over a fatal collision at the 2011 Harvard-Yale tailgate that left one woman dead and two others injured.

Thirty-year-old Nancy Barry, of Salem, Mass., was killed in November 2011 when a U-Haul truck driven by Brendan Ross ’13 — heading toward the tailgate area assigned to the fraternity at the Yale Bowl — accelerated and swerved out of control. Sarah Short SOM ’13 and Harvard employee Elizabeth Dernbach were also injured.

Last month, Short and Barry’s estate filed new suits, identical but separate, individually naming all the students who were members of the Yale chapter of the fraternity at the time of the crash, regardless of whether or not they were present at the tailgate. With Short’s medical expenses exceeding $300,000, Short’s attorney Joel Faxon said he expects a jury to award a sum to Short reaching into seven figures. Paul Edwards, who represents Barry’s estate, said he is looking to recover several million dollars over the death.

The new lawsuit, filed in Connecticut Superior Court in New Haven, is a result of a unique relationship between the national Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity and the local Yale chapter.

According to Faxon, although Short initially sued the national Sig Ep fraternity in 2012, University Director of Risk Management Kathy Johnston said in a deposition that, legally, the local chapter and national association have nothing to do with each other. Furthermore, the national fraternity’s insurance — Liberty Mutual of Boston — does not cover actions by the local chapter, leading Short to sue the local chapter itself.

“[The national fraternity and its insurance], to try to save money, are trying to distance themselves from the case,” Faxon said. “[The local chapter] has been thrown under the bus … by the national fraternity, so the only remedy that our client has is to sue the local fraternity.”

Faxon said that in his 20 years of litigation, he has never seen such an arrangement, as national fraternities typically come to the aid of their local chapters. Because of Connecticut law, which defines the chapter as a voluntary association, the chapter can only be sued by way of its individual members.

Seven current and former members of the fraternity declined to comment on the case. Several others did not respond to requests for comment. Johnston also did not respond to request for comment.

“I have no doubt that each and every one of [the members in 2011], in paying dues to the national organization, had an expectation that the national organization was going to get them the insurance coverage they needed and was going to stand with them,” Edwards said.

According to documents filed in Connecticut Superior Court Monday, 84 of the defendants are now represented by Jeremy Platek, an attorney based in White Plains, N.Y.

Edwards said Platek’s representation of the defendants is likely a sign that the national fraternity is beginning to take greater responsibility for the case.

“I would be surprised if all the fraternity members had collectively gotten together and decided to hire one lawyer on such short notice,” Edwards said. “The odds are very high that he was appointed to represent them by the national fraternity.”

Attorney Eric Smith, a colleague of Faxon’s who is also working on the case, said the defendants were notified in late November and early December. The first of the defendants made their initial court appearance on Jan. 6, and the last will do so today.

According to Edwards, though, the cases are likely to remain in the court systems for a number of years.

With these two new lawsuits, the 2011 tailgate collision has now sparked a total of four lawsuits — two from Short, and two from Barry’s estate — against not only the fraternity and its members, but also the University, the city of New Haven and other parties.

Faxon said he expects the four lawsuits to be potentially joined into one in the near future.

In the event of an award of damages or settlement, Faxon said, the fraternity members would likely pay through their parents’ homeowner’s or automobile insurance. Faxon predicted that the defendants’ insurance agencies would in turn sue the national fraternity and Liberty Mutual Insurance. Eventually, he said, the national association would likely take responsibility for any damages awarded by a jury, but the timeline for such an event remains to be determined.

“In the end, there’s not going to be any difference in the outcome of the case,” Faxon said. “[Short] would get the same compensation whether or not we had all these people involved.”

Edwards said he hopes the case is settled before trials are required for each of the defendants. He added that insurance companies often do not come to the settlement table until the eve of a trial.

Short first filed a lawsuit over the incident, naming Ross and the U-Haul company as defendants, in April 2012.

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Florida A&M President Resigns in Wake of Scandal | NewsFeed | TIME.com

Members of the Florida A&M University band 
at a funeral for fellow band member Robert Champion, 
Nov. 30, 2011 in Decatur, Ga

Florida A&M President Resigns in Wake of Scandal | NewsFeed | TIME.com: "(TALLAHASSEE, Fla.) — The president of Florida A&M University submitted his resignation Wednesday, the same day the university was sued by parents of a drum major who died during a hazing. It was unclear if the two events were related."

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Lawsuit Filed Against Brothers for Inaction in Alcohol Death

Lawsuit filed over death of UD freshman
Civil suit names fraternity, five students after teen suffered alcohol poisoning at Nov. off-campus party
By SEAN O'SULLIVAN, The News Journal

WILMINGTON -- The family of a University of Delaware freshman who died after an off-campus party in November filed a wrongful death suit that claims fraternity members let him languish after forcing him to drink a large amount of alcohol.

The suit names the national fraternity, Sigma Alpha Mu, its local chapter and five students, including fraternity officers, the "pledge master" and the student who was assigned as Brett Griffin's "big brother" that night.

It alleges that late on Nov. 7, 2008, and into the next day, the 18-year-old Griffin was taking part in a "mandatory" fraternity function as a pledge, and was pressured into consuming an excessive amount of Southern Comfort. As a result of the hazing, a number of pledges passed out while fraternity brothers watched over an incapacitated Griffin, but did not call for medical assistance for hours, the suit says.

It also alleges they didn't do anything until the teen's lips started turning blue and it was too late. The complaint also charges the national fraternity with failing to supervise the local chapter or institute meaningful anti-hazing policies.

Attorney Douglas E. Feirberg, representing Griffin's parents, Timothy and Julie Griffin, said the Kendall Park, N.J., teen "did not die by simply over-consuming alcohol ... Brett died as a result of longstanding, dangerous fraternity rituals and the family intends to hold those responsible for his death accountable."

Attorney Michael P. Kelly, representing the national fraternity, said, "I have not seen anything to suggest liability on the part of my client, the national Sigma Alpha Mu fraternity."

He added that the national organization has "strict policies and procedures governing conduct."

Feirberg charged that those policies at Sigma Alpha Mu and other national fraternities are "flawed and dangerous" because they rely on "untrained, unprepared, unsuspecting kids" to implement them.

The legal action was filed under seal in New Castle County Superior Court in early April, and opened to the public Thursday by Superior Court Judge John A. Parkins Jr. It does not name UD as a defendant.

The suit was sealed to give officials time to serve paperwork to all parties, Parkins said.

According to the lawsuit and national hazing expert Dave Westol, the former chief executive of a national fraternity who now consults on anti-hazing measures, "Big Brother Night" is one of the "three deadliest nights" for fraternities.

"That is a phrase I've used for a number of years now," he said.

The other two are "bid night," when pledges are accepted, and initiation night, when pledges are made into full members.

Despite years of education efforts by national fraternities and sororities and schools, hazing has continued because it is a "power trip" for some who need to boost their egos, Westol said.

Citing studies on fraternities, the lawsuit states that pledges at ritual events are "subject to a number of psychological and emotional forces that undermine their ability to exercise self-restraint, and render them particularly suspectible to perceived 'encouragement' to drink to excess."

The lawsuit also states that the incident involving Griffin began at one home on Annabelle Street in Newark, rented by several fraternity members, where big brothers were assigned to pledges.

Griffin and others then went to a second house on Annabelle Street, also rented by chapter members, to meet with their big brother and "family" members.

At this meeting, according to court papers, pledges were given the "family drink" despite being under age and were instructed to drink "with their family."

On such nights, a pledge typically is expected to consume an entire bottle, according to the suit. "[T]he 'family drink' is particularly deadly because of the unavoidable association between belonging and finishing" it, the suit says.

The lawsuit says fraternity members knew Griffin had too much, was sick "and unable to walk or take care of himself," so they took turns watching over him for several hours. However, "none of them made the slightest effort to dial 911 during this extended period of time to summon the emergency services Brett needed to survive."

It was only around 3 a.m., when Griffin was observed "to be pale and his lips slightly blue" that a call was made, according to the lawsuit.

Griffin was unconscious when crews arrived and was transported to Christiana Hospital, where he died of acute alcohol poisoning.

In March, six students were arrested by Newark police and charged, most for misdemeanors related to providing alcohol to minors and underage possession and consumption of alcohol.

Only one of the six, Michael J. Bassett, 20, of Great Neck, N.Y., whom court papers identify as Griffin's "big brother," is named as a defendant in the civil lawsuit.

Bassett faces the most serious criminal charges brought by police, including criminal solicitation, providing alcohol to a minor, possession of marijuana with intent to deliver, conspiracy and maintaining a dwelling for drug sales.

The other students named as defendants in the civil suit include Jason M. Aaron of Melville, N.Y., the fraternity chapter president; Daniel Z. Troper of Short Hills, N.J., the chapter vice president, and Matthew P. Siracusa of Florida, N.Y., and Daniel P. Okin of Creeskill, N.J., -- both identified as pledge masters.

Attorneys, when they could be identified for each, either did not return calls for comment or declined to comment.

Lt. Brian Henry said Newark police do not have any additional charges pending, but he said the case remains an open investigation. "If we find out more information, we may revisit what we've done," which could lead to more charges.

The Delaware Attorney General's office declined to comment as did officials with the University of Delaware.

Sammy Sues Fraternity over Previous Hazing Results

Driver in fatal hit-and-run sues fraternity over hazing
By TONY RIZZOThe Kansas City Star

An area man who was tied up for hours inside a dog cage at a Louisiana fraternity claims in a lawsuit that the hazing incident led to post-traumatic stress syndrome that hinders his decision-making abilities.

Two months after the hazing, Curtis Mertensmeyer killed a pedestrian in a hit-and-run crash on Ward Parkway.

Although it does not mention the accident, the lawsuit maintains that post-traumatic stress syndrome caused Mertensmeyer to “take unwise actions because of a breakdown in his decision-making process in stressful situations.”

The lawyer who recently filed the federal suit in Kansas City declined to comment.

Other fraternities across the country have faced similar lawsuits in recent years, some involving hazing incidents in which fraternity pledges died.

Mertensmeyer, 21, is incarcerated at a Missouri prison after pleading guilty in November to involuntary manslaughter in the May hit-and-run death of 25-year-old Daniel Riemann. In February, Mertensmeyer received a five-year sentence, but a judge will consider probation after he serves 120 days.

He filed his lawsuit against the Sigma Alpha Mu fraternity and its chapter at Tulane University in New Orleans, where Mertensmeyer was a student and fraternity pledge.

The fraternity’s national office and the Tulane chapter president did not respond to phone and e-mail requests for comment.

Tulane has a zero-tolerance policy on hazing, university spokesman Michael Strecker said. The Sigma Alpha Mu fraternity is facing a student conduct hearing for allegedly violating the policy, he said.

The university learned of hazing allegations against the fraternity Jan. 15, he said. It immediately placed the fraternity on temporary suspension while university staff investigate, he said.

While suspended, the fraternity can’t hold events at the chapter house or off campus. On-campus meetings must be supervised by an adviser or representative from the fraternity’s national office.

Strecker said he could not discuss whether Mertensmeyer’s case triggered the investigation.

Mertensmeyer’s mother, Jane Stafford, who is also the attorney who filed the suit, declined to discuss the hazing incident.

The lawsuit contends Mertensmeyer was forced to crawl inside a dog cage and was left there for several hours with his hands and feet tied together, according to the suit. Fraternity members allegedly threw items at him and poured unknown liquids on him while verbally abusing him.

After being released from the cage, the suit says, Mertensmeyer went outside with his feet and hands still tied, fell on concrete outside the fraternity house and injured himself.

Afterward, fraternity members continued to threaten and harass him to keep him from reporting the hazing. They told him that “the entire Greek system would be out to ‘get him’ on campus,” the suit alleges.

As a result, Mertensmeyer allegedly suffered permanent emotional and mental injuries.
“Because of the post traumatic stress syndrome, when faced with stressful situations, (he) fails to make decisions in an appropriate and thought-out manner,” according to the lawsuit.

The suit does not mention a specific amount of damages being sought.

“Hazing at fraternities is a serious and deadly problem,” said Douglas Fierberg, an expert on anti-hazing laws and a lawyer who has represented hazing victims and their families across the country.

The problem has persisted despite state laws and the anti-hazing policies of fraternities and universities, he said. Missouri, Kansas and Louisiana are among 44 states that have outlawed hazing.

“Within the last six months alone, several kids have died in fraternity hazing incidents,” Fierberg said. “That’s not counting kids who have likely been injured in hazing incidents that have not yet been discovered.”

News reports recount at least five deaths nationwide this school year in which hazing is suspected.

Though fraternities ban hazing, Fierberg said, they usually leave implementation of the policies to members who are in their late teens and early 20s.

“They are untrained and are put in the position of making life-and-death decisions,” Fierberg said.

Juries across the country have awarded large verdicts in injury cases, he said.

A student in Texas won a $1.1 million verdict after his skull was cracked and he suffered brain damage. A Kentucky student who was beaten and suffered renal failure won $1 million. A Maryland student received a $375,000 judgment plus punitive damages after he was beaten and a heat lamp was held next to his face.

In the hit-and-run case, Mertensmeyer admitted in Jackson County Circuit Court that he had been drinking last May when he drove along Ward Parkway near 56th Street and struck something with his car.

He drove to nearby Loose Park, where one of his passengers told him he may have hit a person. He said he started to walk back to the scene but “froze” and left when he saw flashing emergency lights.

Daniel Riemann’s mother, Kelly Riemann, said Mertensmeyer’s defense attorneys never raised anything about the alleged hazing during the criminal case.

“I don’t think this has anything to do with what he did to my son,” she said.
© 2009 Kansas City Star and wire service sources. All Rights Reserved.

Penn State vs PDT over Fraternity House

Lawyers spar over Penn State frat deed
By Adam Clark, Daily Collegian

As Penn State attorney James Horne left the courtroom Monday after a hearing on the future of the former Phi Delta Theta fraternity house, his opponent called out to him.

"Hey, Horne," said James Bryant, the fraternity's attorney. "That was fun."

Though Judge David Grine did not make a decision on whether Penn State has the right to buy the century-old fraternity house, the two attorneys presented their positions on the rare "law against perpetuities," providing a packed courtroom with a half-hour of lengthy and often dense discussion on deed clauses.

Bryant said he expects a decision on the rule in about four weeks. Horne said it could come as soon as a matter of days or as long as a few months.

Bryant opened the hearing by discussing the property's 1905 deed, which provides the university an option to purchase the 240 N. Burrowes Road property if it is no longer used as a fraternity or chapter house by the Pennsylvania Theta Chapter of the Phi Delta Theta fraternity.

The attorney said this option is null and void under the rule against perpetuities because it was not exercised within "a lifetime plus 21 years" of the deed's signing. Former Penn State President George Atherton and former Penn State Board of Trustees President James Beaver, who both signed the deed, died in 1906 and 1914, respectively.

"We know George Atherton is dead because he's buried next to Schwab Auditorium," Bryant said. "We know James Beaver is dead because he's got a picture in the courthouse."
The rule, developed "way before Joe Paterno," was originally created in England before the American Revolution and was later established in America, Bryant said.

Horne responded with his own flair, calling the rule outdated and contrary to public policy.
"The last time I looked we are not in England, and I haven't seen a lot of feudal lords running around," Horne said. "The rule is no longer favored."

The rare legal standard has been eliminated or modified in almost every state, including a Pennsylvania legislative decision to abolish the rule for every interest created after Dec. 31, 2006, Horne said.

To disregard the rule because of this argument, Byrant said, would be like telling the last person to be executed in a newly death penalty-free state, "Sucks to be you."

Both attorneys referred to precedents set in previous legal cases, with Horne pointing out cases deciding in favor of the "rule against perpetuities" featured the sole right to purchase the property at any time.

Unlike these previous cases, Penn State did not have control to choose when the property's ownership was transferred until the fraternity was suspended by its parent organization, Horne said.

This is different, Bryant said. The university wasn't automatically given the house when the fraternity lapsed -- it only gained the right to buy it. This option violates the "rare as rabies" perpetuities rule, he said.

At the conclusion of the 30-minute hearing, Horne turned to the seated observers and joked he had never had so many people come to watch him perform.

The crowded courtroom included Phi Delta Theta alumni, current members of the unsanctioned fraternity and representatives from Penn State, such as Director of Fraternity and Sorority Life Roy Baker.

"Normally, it's in front of empty seats and it's very rarely such an interesting point of law," Bryant said. "That was as good as lawyering as you saw in the Bush-Gore election."
(C) 2008 Daily Collegian

AU Student Injured at Sig Ep House Files Suit

Felony Assault Warrant Filed in AU Fraternity Fight; Family Files Civil Suit
COLUMBUS, GA (WTVM) - As Auburn University student Taylor Jones returned home to Montgomery after being released from the hospital this weekend, the Lee County District Attorney and the Auburn Police Department issued a warrant Monday morning for the fraternity member accused of assaulting him.

18-year-old Zachary Quillen, a member of the Sigma Phi Epsilon Fraternity, is being charged with Felony Assault in the 2nd Degree, stemming from the alleged incident back on January 11th.

This news from District Attorney Nick Abbot comes right on the heels of a civil suit filed in the Circuit Court of Lee County, Alabama by the Jones' family against Quillen and the fraternity.
The complaint states the fraternity failed to provide proper and adequate security to ensure safety at a party at the fraternity house.

Family of injured AU freshman sues fraternity, student
Katie Stallcup Opelika-Auburn New

The family of an Auburn University student who was injured at a fraternity house earlier this month filed suit Monday afternoon against the national fraternity, the local chapter and a fraternity member.

The suit was filed in Lee County Circuit Court by Beasley, Allen, Crow, Methvin, Portis & Miles of Montgomery. The suit, on behalf of student Taylor G. Jones, was filed in the name of his father, Michael G. Jones.

Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity and the local chapter of the fraternity are named as defendants, as well as a student the law firm says is a fraternity member.The suit claims the fraternity failed to provide security and safety at a party at the house late Jan. 10. It does not ask for specific amounts of damages.

Jones, 18, was injured in the early morning hours of Jan. 11 at the Sigma Phi Epsilon house on West Magnolia Avenue, police have said. Jones was taken to The Medical Center in Columbus, where he spent more than a week in the intensive care unit.

Jones was discharged from the hospital Saturday. Police, the university and fraternity officials have said they are investigating the case.

No arrest had been made as of Monday afternoon, but Auburn police have said they expect to present the case to the Lee County district attorney for review Monday.A response to the suit has not yet been filed.

SAE Gets New Trial in 2006 Hazing Death

District judge grants fraternity motion for new trial
By Miguel Liscano and Claire Osborn
Austin American-Statesman

A state district judge has reversed a $16 million judgment against the local and national chapters of Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity.

Judge John Dietz Tuesday ordered a new trial in a case where the national and University of Texas chapters of the fraternity were sued by the parents of freshman pledge Tyler Cross, who fell to his death in 2006 after officials said he was subjected to hazing.

In October, Dietz ordered the Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity to pay each of the parents of the Marietta, Ga., native $2.5 million for mental anguish and nearly $81,000 for funeral expenses, as well as additional damages.

Dietz issued the order in October after the national and local fraternity chapters failed to respond to a lawsuit filed in September. But state law allowed the chapters to seek a new trial if the representatives explained why they didn’t respond to the suit and could defend allegations against them.

In a press release, Jim Ewbank, an attorney for the fraternity, said: “The two Sigma Alpha Epsilon defendants put on evidence that showed their failure to file an answer to the lawsuit was an accident, and there were meritorious defenses to the family’s claim. The case will now proceed as if the Judgment had not been entered, and the defendants will have their day in court to prove that Tyler Cross’ death was an unfortunate accident.”

Travis County prosecutors began an investigation into the fraternity after Cross, pictured at right, fell from his fifth-floor balcony of an off-campus dormitory in November 2006.Copyright 2008. The Austin American-Statesman