Penn State Tekes in the news

[hoosier]

Nov. 21, 2005 ]

Student injured in suspected fall from window

By Devon Lash
Collegian Staff Writer

A Penn State student has been hospitalized for serious back and neck injuries, which police said may have resulted from a fall from a fraternity house window around 5 a.m. Saturday.

The 19-year-old student was transported to Mount Nittany Medical Center and flown to Geisinger Medical Center after neighbors heard her calling for help outside of Tau Kappa Epilson fraternity, 346 E. Prospect Ave., early Saturday morning, the State College Police Department said. Police declined to release the woman's name.

State College police Detective Chris Weaver said medical professionals are optimistic about her condition and believe she will make a full recovery.

Doctors said the victim's injuries are consistent with a fall from "some height" -- at least a second-story window, Weaver said. Given the victim's location, he said, there are six possible windows from which she could've fallen.

Weaver said the woman was located in an alley on the west side of the house under the influence of alcohol and complaining of back and neck pain.

Weaver said police have determined the victim was drinking elsewhere until she arrived at Tau Kappa Epsilon around 11 p.m. He said fraternity members denied there was any large party at the fraternity that night or that the victim had been drinking at the house.

He said some fraternity members told police the victim was last seen sleeping inside the house around 2:30 a.m. Police have not determined the victim's whereabouts from 2:30 a.m. until she was discovered at 5 a.m.

Police are interviewing fraternity members about the incident but will not have any definite information until they can interview the victim, Weaver said.

Tau Kappa Epsilon members are fully cooperating with the investigation, he added.

Steve Dryer, Tau Kappa Epsilon president, said fraternity members are unaware how the victim sustained her injuries. He added that when fraternity members found the victim Saturday, there was an unknown man attempting to assist her. Fraternity members, who are familiar with some neighbors, did not recognize the man, Dryer said.

He said that when police arrived at the house, the man was questioned and released. "No one knew who he was, and police just let him go," he said.

He added that the victim had been drinking at another fraternity before arriving at Tau Kappa Epsilon and had not consumed any alcohol there. Fraternity members do not know where she was from 2:30 to 5 a.m., he said.

Interfraternity Council President Brian Bertges said yesterday he was unaware of the incident and police have not contacted him. "I'm sure [any fraternity member] would cooperate fully with a police investigation," he said.

Weaver said police have determined "about five or six" possible scenarios.

"I think she fell, got up and tried to walk," he said. "Alcohol was definitely a factor in this situation."

Weaver said he planned to interview the victim and her family at the hospital yesterday. He was unavailable for additional comment by press time.