Three days after Matthew Paris suffered a critical fall in the Psi Upsilon fraternity house, legal implications as to who could be held accountable for the accident are unclear.
Paris fell two stories early Sunday morning after reportedly consuming 21 shots of vodka. He remains in critical condition in the intensive care unit at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania.
University officials have not determined whether the fraternity, also known as the Castle, remained within the guidelines of Penn's Alcohol and Drug Policy for registered on-campus parties.
The policy states that no hard alcohol is to be consumed on the premises, and that underage students are not to consume alcohol, in addition to other rules.
Whether or not the Castle will be found in violation of these rules rests on an investigation conducted by the University's Office of Student Conduct, according to Penn spokeswoman Lori Doyle.
The investigation will "determine whether there is individual or collective responsibility for a violation of any University policies -- alcohol or otherwise -- and appropriate disciplinary action will be taken," Doyle said.
She added, "It would be premature to speculate on what might happen until we know the facts, and for now everybody's energy is concentrated on making sure Matthew and his family and his friends at Penn are getting the support they need at this difficult time."
However, according to Penn Law professor Kermit Roosevelt, even if the Castle is found guilty of breaching the alcohol and drug policy, there is still little chance that the fraternity or Penn will be held legally responsible for Paris' fall.
For the fraternity, "violations of the University handbook doesn't give rise to legal liability," he said, adding that the only legal accountability the fraternity could face would be if, under Pennsylvania law, the hosts of a party are held responsible if they allow guests to keep drinking once they are already visibly intoxicated.
As for the University -- which owns the deed to the fraternity house -- Roosevelt said, "If alcohol is the only cause of the accident, the University shouldn't be liable unless it provided him with the alcohol or was negligent in allowing him to drink it."
But while no lawsuits may come of the incident, the Castle could face a fate similar to that of some of its predecessors if the University's investigation reveals that fraternity did not follow all of the rules for a registered, on-campus party.
Last January, the brothers of Zeta Beta Tau fraternity renounced their colony status, following their fourth University policy violation in three years.
In ZBT's case, the University allowed the brothers to stay in the house for the remainder of the semester, but forced those who wished to remain to sign an occupancy agreement that outlawed social events and alcohol and called for 24-hour house supervision.
In April 2000, the Sigma Alpha Mu fraternity was suspended for violating dry rush procedures while on social probation. Last year, the fraternity recolonized, and rejoined the InterFraternity Council.
