FIJI's natl. office concludes probe into alum's death

A disciplinary panel will rule today if the chapter should be punished. A Penn probe continues. The national chapter of Phi Gamma Delta has completed its own investigation into Sunday's alcohol-related death of a University alumnus and will release its findings today, FIJI national Executive Director Bill Martin said yesterday. Martin was on campus Tuesday to investigate possible violations of the fraternity's alcohol and risk management policies surrounding the death of 26-year-old Penn alumnus Michael Tobin early Sunday morning outside the FIJI house at 3619 Locust Walk. Tobin, a FIJI brother and former lacrosse team co-captain who graduated from the College of Arts and Sciences in 1994, was in town for an annual alumni dinner and according to police was drinking throughout the day prior to his fall. Though Martin said "he could not speculate" on the possible punishments should FIJI be found in violation of policy, he said they could range from a letter of reprimand to "an action which essentially would close the chapter." If there is a violation, the national chapter would likely choose a punishment by next week, Martin said. Martin said yesterday that the fraternity's risk management policy states that "chapters are not supposed to purchase and/or provide alcohol to anyone," and that if a chapter wants to hold an event, participants must bring their own alcohol or hold the event at a third-party location. The national office is also looking into whether FIJI served minors at Saturday's party. Martin must present the facts gathered from the investigation to FIJI's national five-member board of conduct over a conference call before a decision is reached. Martin, who flew back to national headquarters in Kentucky yesterday after his day-long investigation, would not comment on the findings of his probe, though he said he did not think it revealed anything beyond what the police investigation showed. He and a regional FIJI officer held a meeting Tuesday night with the undergraduate fraternity members to discuss Martin's information-gathering process. Wharton junior Martin Park, the president of Penn's FIJI chapter, declined to comment yesterday. Within the University, the Office of Student Conduct is currently investigating whether FIJI violated Penn's alcohol policy, according to Office of Fraternity and Sorority Affairs Director Scott Reikofski. Once the OSC completes its probe, it will turn the results over to OFSA. The fraternity house has remained closed since Sunday, when University Police discovered several fire code violations that needed to be fixed before the brothers could be allowed back in. OFSA brought contractors in to inspect the house yesterday. At yesterday's University Council meeting, University President Judith Rodin said she was concerned and disappointed by the number of alcohol-related events this past weekend -- which also included a state police raid of two downtown sorority parties and the alcohol-related hospitalization of a female freshman from the Quadrangle. "It's not some joke anymore," Rodin said. "It's not some scene out of Animal House. People are dying now. Just ask Michael Tobin's family." Tobin died from multiple internal injuries and a fractured skull resulting from a fall down a cement staircase behind the FIJI house, police said. The FIJI fraternity has had a history of alcohol-related incidents. An October 1997 incident at the local chapter attracted at least 50 police officers from several forces after three allegedly drunk men were arguing loudly outside the Penn FIJI house. One of the men was arrested for assaulting four Penn Police officers, and another -- then a College freshman -- was arrested for and then cleared of resisting arrest in an incident that spurred allegations of police misconduct. On the national level, the fraternity received widespread attention in September 1997, when a Massachusetts Institute of Technology freshman and FIJI pledge died from alcohol poisoning after a pledge event at that school. The MIT chapter later had its charter revoked. The FIJI national organization announced plans for all houses to be alcohol-free by the year 2001. A memorial service for Tobin is being held tonight at 7:30 p.m. at the St. Agatha-St. James Church at 38th and Chestnut streets. The InterFraternity Council is sponsoring a Friday night vigil on College Green, and Tobin's funeral will be Saturday morning on Cape Cod in Massachusetts. Daily Pennsylvanian staff writer Laura McClure contributed to this article.

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