Student Affairs administrators placed Sigma Nu fraternity on "interim suspension" Monday after Chapel Hill police officers found six of the group's pledges wandering intoxicated near Old Erwin Road.
Administrators said they were going to complete their investigation before issuing any judgment, but were looking into the incident as an act of hazing. They said they hoped to finish their work in about a week, and members of Sigma Nu have been prohibited from having any activities together in the meantime, including meetings and parties.
Police officers found the students, all of whom are freshmen, around 4 a.m. Monday morning near the Duke School for Children Middle School. Sue Wasiolek, assistant vice president for student affairs and dean of students, said the students had been dropped off several miles from campus on Old Erwin - a long, winding road with few lights - and had been expected to find their way back. Officers from the Chapel Hill Police Department picked up the students and transported two of them to the Duke Emergency Department for treatment related to alcohol overconsumption. They were later released.
Wasiolek said suspension is a common way to prevent a living group from promoting any harmful activities while an investigation is ongoing.
"The totality of the circumstances dictated that we issue a suspension until the case can be resolved," she said.
Andrew Axelrod, president of Sigma Nu and a sophomore, declined to comment. Jeremy Morgan, president of the Interfraternity Council and a senior in Sigma Nu, could not be reached for comment.
Kacie Wallace, associate dean for judicial affairs, said the alleged incident follows several recent cases against Sigma Nu, including one for noise and one for damage to the residence halls. If administrators find evidence of hazing, she said, disciplinary action against the fraternity or its members could range from educational programs to dissolution of the living group.
"We are trying to figure out what happened before making any judgments," Wallace said. "We have no idea how many individuals were aware, were involved, that sort of thing."
Although four living groups have left campus in the last four years for various reasons, no living group has been dissolved for hazing in at least 10 years.
The University's bulletin describing student policies calls hazing a "serious infraction of university regulations." It is also a misdemeanor under North Carolina law, punishable by up to a $500 fine and/or six months imprisonment, according to the bulletin. Under the law, any student convicted for hazing, or aiding or abetting hazing, must be expelled from his or her university.
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