In new legal action, the Syracuse University chapter of the Theta Tau engineering fraternity is seeking to reverse its permanent expulsion from the university in Jefferson County Supreme Court, according to court documents obtained by The Daily Orange on Wednesday.

The request for judicial proceeding is the third legal action — and first by the organization — brought against SU since videos of people in the fraternity house performing skits using racial and ethnic slurs surfaced in April 2018. Two lawsuits related to the videos, brought up by individual members, are ongoing in Jefferson County and federal courts.

The suit, filed in mid-October, only names “the Tau Chapter of Theta Tau Fraternity” as a plaintiff. Court documents filed on Oct. 17 show that the chapter is seeking judicial relief through an Article 78 proceeding, which is generally used to appeal the decision of a New York state or local agency. If a judge rules in Theta Tau’s favor, the chapter’s permanent expulsion from SU could be voided.

Article 78 also allows judges to make decisions on the fairness of a private institution’s internal processes, including student proceedings, according to The Student Appeal, an online law journal.

James McClusky, a Jefferson County Supreme Court judge, is presiding over the case, according to court records. McClusky is also presiding over a lawsuit filed against the university by 10 students SU suspended in connection to the videos.

In the two other lawsuits filed against SU, lawyers argue that SU did not follow the rules laid out in its Code of Student Conduct relating to student suspensions and the disciplinary process. The judges in both cases are being asked to make a decision on the fairness of students’ punishment.

“Syracuse University does not comment on the specifics of pending litigation,” said Sarah Scalese, SU’s senior associate vice president for university communications, in an email. “We stand by the action we took and remain steadfast in our commitment to defending the standards of conduct on our campus.”

In addition to permanently expelling the fraternity chapter, the university suspended 14 students in connection to the videos and put Theta Tau’s vice regent on probation. The fraternity chapter called the videos a “satirical sketch.”

Karen Felter, an attorney at the Syracuse-based branch of Smith, Sovik, Kendrick and Sugnet law firm, filed the request for judicial intervention on behalf of the chapter, court documents show. Felter is also representing students in the two lawsuits against SU.

Felter did not respond to a request for comment on this story Wednesday night.

It is unclear whether Theta Tau’s national organization is involved in the latest court action. A call and email to Theta Tau’s national office on Wednesday went unreturned.

A hearing on the legal action filed by the SU Theta Tau chapter is scheduled for Dec. 6, according to court records.

Published on October 31, 2018 at 10:52 pm

Contact Jordan: jmulle01@syr.edu | @jordanmuller18