Civil suit against Sigma Nu settled

A civil suit filed by a female student, Sarah, in spring 2002 against the Sigma Nu fraternity and two fraternity brothers for charges that included battery, reckless service of alcohol, and false imprisonment, was settled in April 2003.

The case was settled on April 23, prior to the trial date for the case. Charges against one of the two men, who were Sigma Nu brothers at the time, named in the case were dismissed before the settlement. The court has sealed the terms of settlement, which explain if guilt or innocence was determined and if money exchanged hands.

According to the plaintiff in the case, Sarah was sexually assaulted in a bedroom of the fraternity house in the early morning hours of Feb. 9, 2001 after drinking beer and "death punch" with fraternity members in the basement.

The plaintiff and the two brothers named in the suit are no longer students at UNH. A criminal investigation was conducted regarding the incident. However, Strafford County Attorney Janice Rundles determined there was not enough conclusive evidence to prosecute the case in criminal court. Rundles reviewed the criminal case a second time, as requested by Sarah and her family, but again determined the evidence was not clear enough to pursue the case. It was then that Sarah, along with her attorney Katy Sullivan, decided to pursue a civil suit.

"I know that (Sarah) wanted to see justice done and that she was not satisfied with the criminal investigation," said Sullivan, an attorney with the firm of Douglas, Leonard and Garvey in Concord.

The fraternity?s recognition was suspended in fall 2001 when it was sanctioned through Judicial Programs for bystander responsibility because many individuals in the house saw the plaintiff at Sigma Nu that night in a state that endangered her safety, according to Steve Pappajohn, director of Greek Affairs. The fraternity was reinstated in May 2003 when they filled the requirements of their suspension, which included drawing up a crisis management plan to be distributed to other fraternities.

Chris Hall, a junior and current president of Sigma Nu, said the cost of the fraternity?s insurance from the national organization has gone up since the incident because the house is considered to be of higher risk.

He said the money to pay for the fees of the civil case was paid for through insurance.

Until speaking with TNH, Pappajohn said he had not heard about the settlement.

"This seems to be a little more of an internal thing (within the fraternity) in our eyes," he said.

When asked about whether there would have been further repercussions for the fraternity if the outcome of the suit had favored the plaintiff, Pappajohn said there probably would not have been further action taken because the fraternity had already been held accountable for bystander responsibility and had filled their sanctions.

According to Anne Lawing, vice president of student affairs, said fraternities are private, non-profit organizations that may be affiliated with the University. It was in that context that the civil charges were filed against Sigma Nu, its national chapter and the fraternity brothers. The University has had no legal standing in the suit.

"Our concern is, are we doing everything we can according to our code of conduct to respond to an incident?" she said.

Lawing said the University responded at the time of the incident.

"My own concern is who is still here," she said. "We remain interested in all our students, and we remain interested in all sororities and fraternities." The civil case included 18 counts in all. Charges of reckless service of alcohol, false imprisonment, negligence and battery for non-consensual sexual conduct, and negligent infliction of emotional distress were filed against the national chapter of Sigma Nu Fraternity, Inc., and the local chapter, the Iota Sigma House.

Charges of false imprisonment, non-consensual sexual conduct and intentional infliction of emotional distress were filed against the two individuals. The case also included charges of negligence against Jesse and June Gangwer, the owners of the house where Sigma Nu is located on 21 Madbury Rd.

"All that I can tell you is that the case is settled, and all the terms of the case are confidential," Sullivan said. "It's not uncommon for cases to settle, and it's not uncommon for settlements to be confidential." Editor?s note: The New Hampshire has chosen to withhold Sarah?s last name and the names of the Sigma Nu brothers named in the civil suit for protection of their privacy.