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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Yale Fraternities Consider Forming IFC

After ‘Yale Sluts,’ fraternities consider forming council
Zachary Abrahamson
Staff Reporter

Facing charges of misogyny and insensitivity leveled against them by the Women’s Center, among others, following the circulation last month of the “We Love Yale Sluts” photo, several leaders of Yale’s fraternities have begun discussion of an “inter-fraternity council” — a student-led body of representatives from Yale’s fraternities that would serve as a liaison between Greeks and University administrators.

Although talk of the body’s creation remains informal for the time being, ideas on the table call for a tool that will facilitate communication among Greeks and between Greeks and administrators. Assistant Dean of Student Affairs Edgar Letriz, who lobbied for the formation of such a body a decade ago, said he would support its founding today as well.

No consensus on the proposal exists among Yale’s fraternities, but leaders interviewed concerned with fraternities’ image on campus said they are open to the idea as a means of dispelling what they call a long-standing “misperception” regarding the role of fraternities on campus.

And Alpha Delta Phi President Kevin Discepolo ’09 said he is on board with the idea of an IFC, adding that the body could serve to repair relations between Greek organizations on campus and the University.

On the night of Jan. 20, members of the Yale Women’s Center discovered on Facebook and circulated by e-mail a photograph of Zeta Psi pledges in front of the Center, holding a sign reading “We Love Yale Sluts.” The e-mail subject line read “This Time We Sue,” and the body of the message claimed that the supposed act of sexual harassment called for legal action.

An attempt to create a similar group led by Letriz in 1998 — the last time such the University seriously considered such a proposal — sputtered to a halt after proposals put forward by administrators and fraternity leaders received a tepid response from campus Greek organizations.

This time, final say on the details of any IFC — or even whether to create one at all — will belong to fraternity members, without whose participation an IFC could not succeed. It appears unlikely at this point that any body created out of the current conversations would have the power to discipline its members for violations of a hypothetical University-wide risk management policy that IFCs at other schools have been known to draw up, fraternity leaders and Letriz said.

Letriz — an alumnus of the Union College chapter of the Kappa Sigma fraternity and the member of the administration who is most experienced with fraternity relations — said the University’s approach to an IFC has always been “softer” than at other schools.

“At most institutions, an IFC is often a self-governing disciplinary body — we did not want that kind of IFC,” Letriz said, referring to the discussions in 1998. “We wanted a collective of representatives from fraternities who could come together to discuss collaboration on programming, ways to increase visibility on campus and how to create a more welcoming campus environment.”

At other schools IFCs wield more power — Cornell University’s IFC can fine chapters for violating IFC-drafted risk management policies and at Dartmouth College, the IFC sets a rush schedule which must be followed by Greek organizations.

But Letriz said that at Yale, the University’s extant disciplinary system — in the form of the Executive Committee — already holds the authority to discipline students who violate any rules of conduct an IFC could suggest or codify. Forcing fraternities to register with the Yale College Dean’s Office would not change that, he said.

“A fraternity’s registration [as an undergraduate organization] does not allow us to enact disciplinary action any more so than we can to begin with,” Letriz explained. “This notion that, if groups were to register, the University would have greater control, is a gross misconception.”
Although only five University fraternities — Alpha Epsilon Pi, Delta Kappa Epsilon, Gamma Phi Delta, Lambda Upsilon Lambda and Sigma Chi — are registered as undergraduate organizations, fraternity members interviewed said they would be unlikely to make University registration a prerequisite for membership in the IFC.

Sigma Chi President Brian Goldsmith ’09 said that given the goals of the body — facilitating communication and providing a forum for discussion about Greek Life issues — simply having a representative from each fraternity show up to IFCS meetings and voice an opinion would be sufficient.

For the Women’s Center — which accused fraternities of propagating misogyny on campus in a 26-page report it submitted to administrators on Feb. 9 — the proposal is a welcome step toward improving dialogue between fraternities and other groups on campus, Political Action Coordinator Isabel Polon ’11 said, but more should be done.

“I think we at the Women’s Center all feel that any steps taken toward some sort of mediation focused on fraternities is positive,” Polon said. “But we don’t think it should be the only action taken.”

Among other conditions, the Center’s report calls for a reform of sexual-harassment and sexual-assault education provided to students, the formation of an “official institutional relationship” between the University and Yale’s fraternities, and the calling of the Zeta Psi members involved in the photograph, as well as the fraternity’s leaders, before the Executive Committee.

Sigma Phi Epsilon President Michael Schwartzman ’09 voiced support for an IFC, saying it could potentially foster “an atmosphere of mutual recognition and respect in interactions” between fraternities and the University. But he said fraternity leaders should not allow emotion, running high after last month’s incident, to push them toward creating a body that lacks the support of a broad swath of Yale’s fraternity population.

“I’m hesitant to believe that a sufficiently balanced IFC could be created as a response to recent events,” Schwartzman said. “Given the Women’s Center’s recommendations, I fear the principal expectation for the IFC would be to put fraternities on a tighter leash.”

Yet the allure of working with the University remains dim for other fraternities, including Delta Kappa Epsilon, where newly-minted president James Pilkerton ’09 said an IFC would be unnecessary at Yale and that the fraternity plans to stay independent.

“As far as remaining independent goes,” Pilkerton said. “The way I see it, as long as we’re off campus, and as long as we’re not receiving University funding, there’s no reason for us not to stay as independent as we can.”

The Women’s Center asked that the University respond to their report’s stipulations by March 7, but administrators have said that a thoughtful discussion process will likely take longer

Yale Daily News - SigEp schooled in fine culture

An article in the Yale paper highlights the cultured side of SigEp there.

Marcus Hooks ’09 brought two vanilla lattes to an interview with the News last Sunday — one for himself and another for the reporter. The vice president of macro development for the Yale chapter of the Sigma Phi Epsilon Fraternity knows how to behave like a gentleman.

Macro Development? Is this a new Exec Board office?

SigEp, known on campus as “The Gentleman’s Frat,” launched an initiative this year that brings local merchants into chapter meetings to make presentations on topics ranging from cooking lessons to wardrobe tips. While some Yalies not involved with the fraternity said they are amused at the idea of “gentleman lessons,” Hooks said the presentations are intended to teach the men of SigEp to achieve a “sound mind, sound body,” in keeping with the fraternity’s philosophy of balance in members’ personal lives.
[...]
SigEp Brothers have so far received tutorials from a jeweler, who taught them how to pick princess-cut diamonds and distinguish between platinum and white gold, and a clothing saleswoman, who instructed them on how to tie a Windsor knot.
[...]
Hooks said the speakers help save the SigEp brothers from social blunders by teaching them proper etiquette.

“Guys want to know how to pull off jewelry without looking like a rapper,” Hooks said.

Gabe Friedman ’10, a SigEp member, said he picked up tips on appropriate attire for professional interviews and formal occasions from Lucy Quagliato, a saleswoman at Raggs, a local men’s clothing store. Quagliato’s presentation dealt with popping collars — whether they are a trendy statement or a fashion faux pas.

The chapter noted increased meeting attendance for the sessions, which would indicate there is interest in learning the "soft skills" of presentation and interaction. However, the reporter seems to be making subtle jabs at the concept that guys might possibly be interested in fashion or jewelry in a "not that there's anything wrong with that" sort of way.

Journalistic bias aside, the article does offer some interesting ideas. Would your chapter benefit from having local merchants give a short information session at a chapter meeting? Would meeting attendance increase? But most importantly, ...who the hell wears a Windsor knot with a popped collar anyway?

Yale Daily News - SigEp schooled in fine culture

Student Charged After Shots Fired

Police Find Weapons At Yale Frat House
By KIM MARTINEAU Courant Staff Writer

NEW HAVEN - A Yale University student who allegedly fired off pistol rounds in the living room of his fraternity house over the weekend was arraigned Tuesday on charges of reckless endangerment, threatening and breach of peace.

Yale police arrested David Light, 21, on Monday night at his off-campus frat house, Beta Theta Pi, after confiscating 11 guns - including two illegal assault rifles - and a stockpile of chemicals and ammunition, according to Yale and police. Light, who is entering his junior year at Yale, has been temporarily suspended from school and, according to police, may face additional charges.

On Sunday, a 21-year-old man visiting his brother at the fraternity house on Lynwood Place called police to report an unusual confrontation, according to Light's arrest warrant affidavit. Christopher Keefer told police that early Friday, at 3 a.m., he was in his brother's bedroom when he heard gunshots and ran downstairs to investigate.

In the common room, Keefer found shell casings on a coffee table and a housemate, Light, holding a semiautomatic pistol. Keefer, apparently an active-duty member in the military, said he told Light to put the gun down but Light told him not to worry about anyone getting hurt - he was firing blanks.

They had been playing beer pong, a drinking game, throughout the night and at the time Light seemed drunk and belligerent, Keefer told police. He warned Light a second time to put the gun away but Light then fired off another two rounds at the ceiling, he said. Keefer told Light that even blanks could kill or hurt people. Light insisted they couldn't.

As the argument escalated, Keefer asked Light to prove his point that no one would get hurt.

"Why don't I point it at your head to find out?" Light allegedly responded.

At that point, Keefer says he retreated upstairs and quickly left the house. Two days later, he reported the incident to police. On Monday afternoon, he visited the Yale police station accompanied by his mother, who lives on the shoreline, to give a statement.

He told police that several days before the confrontation, Light had shown him an AR-15 semiautomatic rifle, a .50-caliber sniper rifle and a .357-caliber revolver that he kept inside his third-floor bedroom.

Police interviewed a maintenance man on the same day who said he'd been in Light's room on Sunday to change the locks and spotted a pistol on the table, a new .50-caliber sniper rifle on the floor and what looked like dozens of boxes of ammunition. Police said Light has long guns registered to him but no state pistol permit.

He is originally from Poway, Calif., near San Diego, and studied chemistry. At Yale, he joined the New Haven Sportsmen's Club.

His emergency suspension will continue until fall, when the board that reviews complaints of student misconduct meets, Yale said. The university stressed that his fraternity house is not owned by Yale and that Beta Theta Pi operates independently.

Bail has been set at $150,000. Light is next scheduled to appear in Superior Court in New Haven on Aug. 2.

Contact Kim Martineau at kmartineau@courant.com.