Hunter
12/22/21
Three University of Iowa fraternities are accused of holding illegal tailgate parties on football game days, and reportedly making things worse by either evading or misleading school investigators.
Tailgate parties were banned after a Sigma Chi freshman died of alcohol poisoning during an out of town event in April 2017.
The Gazette identifies the accused fraternities as Pi Kappa Alpha, Sigma Chi, and the deregistered Phi Delta Theta. University investigators spent weeks this fall interviewing five students who were part of those frat groups, but say in their report that they were mostly fruitless due to the men’s inconsistent information. The investigators relied on evidence provided by Iowa City Police instead.
That evidence found that a September 18th tailgate before the Kent State game at 228 and 300 Melrose Court was approved erroneously due to some confusion, but a coordinator told the hosts, Pi Kappa Alpha and Sigma Chi, that further tailgates were barred.
However, another tailgate was held on October 9th, the day of the Penn State game. Arriving officers responding to reports of a large tailgate on the property spoke to two men affiliated with the deregistered Phi Delta Theta fraternity who said the person who was on the property lease was a member of Sigma Chi. Another Phi Delta Theta associate told officers the party was hosted by PIKE and Sig Chi, and said the city and the university had approved the event.
The investigation also found that the October tailgate featured people coming and going freely, with no ID requirement to get into the event. Alcohol was reportedly freely available, and the frats hadn’t contracted with an outside vendor to serve the alcohol, a university requirement. They’d also hired a DJ playing loud music, which was part of neighborhood complaints.
It was also learned that Sigma Chi and Pi Kappa Alpha made a $30,000 down payment with Big Ten Rentals on the two properties. Sigma Chi also took social dues and tailgate fees ahead of the semester, which investigators say led those who paid for the access to believe they could still hold tailgaters at the Melrose Court properties.
During interviews this fall, one Phi Delta Theta member allegedly told them that he stayed away from alcohol and called it “scary,” but footage from the police bodycam shows him approaching officers on October 9th with a beer in his hand. Investigators determined his testimony was vastly different than what was seen on body cam footage and not consistent.
Sigma Chi has been placed on disciplinary probation through the end of 2022; Pi Kappa Alpha has yet to be determined because investigators are looking into another complaint about them hosting an event with alcohol at the house. Phi Delta Theta can’t be sanctioned by the University of Iowa because they’re not a recognized fraternity on campus.