| hoosier |
07-03-2004 09:10 PM |
AzSU Pikes caught with topless woman, whips, welts on bare butts
ASU fraternity put on probation for hazing
By Kristina Davis, Tribune
An Arizona State University fraternity has been placed on probation for hazing after photos of a whipwielding woman and the red, bare buttocks of male students were released to university administrators earlier this year, officials said.
The Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity will be on probation through Dec. 31, 2005, but members still will be allowed to attend university functions and live at their house on campus, at 615 Alpha Drive, said university spokesman Manny Romero.
Members also must complete a mandatory hazing risk management workshop and 100 hours of community service.
"We are working with the administration and Greek life to put whatever happened in the past and to better the image of Greek life on campus," said Tim Guelich, a fraternity member and president of ASU’s Interfraternity Council. "It’s a moot point whether it was hazing or not, it’s open to interpretation what happened. The fraternity is now dealing with what has been handed to them from administration."
The investigation was prompted by photographs of a woman, who is topless in one of the photos, wielding a whip or belt, while the other students show "clearly visible red marks/welts on their bare buttocks," according to a memo written by ASU police Cmdr. Allen Clark.
Others show at least eight men lying on their stomachs with their arms and legs in awkward positions with pieces of lime in their mouths, the memo stated.
The seven photos were anonymously delivered March 15 to the ASU Office of Greek Life and the Office of Student Life along with a letter of complaint.
"The university administration strongly disapproves of this kind of behavior," officials said in a prepared statement Thursday.
Officials would not confirm whether the students in the photos were pledges or members.
ASU’s Tau Kappa Epsilon fraternity also is under investigation for similar activities, Romero said. Photos linked to the fraternity show topless women dancing and male students being pleasured by the women.
The photos surfaced on the Internet but were taken down on orders from national chapter leaders, said regional director Eric Chamberlain.
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