Bogenberger Complaint Amended to Add 16 Women as Defendants

Tim Burke, Manley Burke, tburke@manleyburke.com

The death of David Bogenberger from alcohol poisoning with a blood alcohol content level five times the legal limit in Illinois has already garnered substantial me­dia attention as a result of the arrest of 22 members of the Pi Kappa Alpha Eta Nu Chapter at Northern Illinois University. Five of the chapter officers face felony hazing charges, while 17 members face misdemeanor hazing charges. This is a re­sult of what is alleged in the civil damage action filed on be­half of the Bogenberger family as “an initiation ritual … known as ‘Moms and Dads Night’ … which involved exces­sive and dangerous consumption of alcohol.”‘

Now in a unique twist, that civil complaint is being amended to add 16 women as defendants. The women were apparently guests at the fraternity event and are alleged to have given Bogenberger excessive and dangerous amounts of alcohol, encouraged him to consume the alcohol, continued to give alcohol to him after he was dangerously intoxicated, and failed to seek medical attention for him.

The female defendants join Pi Kappa Alpha Interna­
tional Fraternity, Inc., its Eta Nu Chapter, seven officers of the fraternity who are named individually and in their capacity as , officers, and 20 of the members of the chapter as defendants. While the Amended Complaint does not make clear the claims against the women, except in generalized statements, news reports indicate that women were assigned as “moms” while members of the chapter were “dads.” The moms and dads were in various rooms in the house and the pledges were re­quired to find their assigned moms and dads and drink in each room while they were looking.

There can be little doubt that the alleged actions were in violation of numerous rules and regulations of the national fraternity. The suit claims the fraternity failed to enforce those rules.

The national fraternity will likely defend on the basis that it did everything that it could to enforce its rules. It is quite likely that the fraternity’s insurance will attempt to avoid covering the individuals and perhaps the chapter that violated their rules. Of course, the fraternity’s insurance would have no obligation to defend the women who are not members of the chapter.

The national fraternity will likely defend on the basis that it did everything that it could to enforce its rules. It is quite likely that the fraternity’s insurance will attempt to avoid covering the individuals and perhaps the chapter that violated their rules. Of course, the fraternity’s insurance would have no obligation to defend the women who are not members of the chapter.

1 Bogenberger v. Pi Kappa Alpha, et al., Circuit Court of Cook County, Ill. County Depattment, Law Division, Case No. 2013 L 001616.