IU fraternity is shut down less than a day after sex video emerges

A collection of Indiana University students snapped photos and nodded in approval as the large, metal letters of a fraternity deemed a distraction and an embarrassment by the student body were pulled from the brothers' home.

"About time. See ya guys!" one student shouted from a passing vehicle on Third Street. Another honked a car horn in excitement and waved to frat members gathered on the front porch.

Among the students witnessing the scrubbing of Alpha Tau Omega from the IU-Bloomington campus was Jordan Haas, a junior from Southern Indiana who clenched his jaw and shook his head as he thought of the fraternity's recent troubles.

But its latest transgression, the circulation of a 29-second video that shows a member and a woman engaged in a sex act while a crowd of men cheered nearby, was beyond what Haas thought was possible.

"It's just so out of control and awful," Haas said. "But I'm not surprised."

Less than a day after an anonymous Twitter account posted the viral video, the university and Indianapolis-based national fraternity strongly denounced its content. Calling the video "highly offensive," the fraternity revoked the local chapter's charter, immediately ceasing all activity. By midafternoon Thursday, all of the letters marking 720 E. Third St. as the ATO house were gone.

Alpha Tau Omega members at the house Thursday declined to comment.

'IT'S JUST EVERYWHERE'

Most of the students who walked past the ATO house Thursday afternoon had already seen the video online. Some pointed and laughed. Others turned to their friends and whispered.

A few more sat across the street on the low brick wall in front of Swain Hall West and waited to see what would happen next.

"Oh, it's just everywhere, man. I heard it was trending more than Hillary Clinton," senior Luke Haig said. "I've got a couple buddies in the house who are respectable guys. That's why it's so shocking to me. I don't know anyone from there who would do what was in that video."

The video caught fire quickly. While it originated on Twitter, many discovered it after its appearance on the front page of Reddit, a user-generated news and social networking site.

The virality of the video through social media provides a cautionary tale for other fraternities and student organizations.

Social media is quickly displaying incidents like the one that happened with the IU fraternity, bringing a new layer of accountability, said Beth McCuskey, Purdue’s vice provost for student life.

“As one looks at how quick things are shared on social media, groups really need to understand that they’ve got to stop the bad behavior because it will get out,” McCuskey said.

Colleges are working with Greek organizations to get a handle on problems, McCuskey said. But when rules are broken, schools must investigate and, if necessary, punish. “When things do go rogue, you have to step in,” she said, “you have to help facilitate a resolution.”

THE VIDEO AND THE AFTERMATH

The video shows more than a dozen men watching a man and woman engage in a sex act on a bare mattress while a second naked woman stands nearby. Music plays in the background, while clapping and yelling or cheering can be heard.

A news release from Alpha Tau Omega states that the 21-year-old man seen in the video was an initiated member of the fraternity. No pledges participated, but the incident involved about half of the fraternity's membership.

IU officials on Thursday lauded the swift action of the national fraternity and said the university would work closely with the group to close the fraternity. The university suspended the local chapter late Wednesday after the video surfaced. It then released a statement Thursday that said the video appeared to be credible.

"Indiana University takes its responsibility to foster a culture of care and respect among the students on its campuses extremely seriously," the university said in a statement. "If true, the alleged actions on the part of some members of the Alpha Tau Omega chapter run completely contrary to that commitment."

In a letter addressed to an unnamed Alpha Tau Omega president, the university said the suspension prohibits "hosting, attending, pairing, participating and sponsoring any new member, chapter or social activities or events until the final disposition of this case."

The letter, sent to the fraternity Wednesday night, says the group is alleged to present "a substantial risk to members of the university community," and orders members to cooperate with the university and the IU Police Department.

Students also were pleased to see quick action.

"I'm appreciative of the action that IU and the national chapter took immediately," senior Sam Rumpza said. "Some of my best friends are in the Greek system, and they’re really good people. It's frustrating and embarrassing as a student of this university to see this kind of stuff happen."

'ONE OF IU's MOST INFAMOUS FRATERNITIES'

This is not the first time the IU chapter of ATO has faced disciplinary actions.

In 1992, a 20-year-old pledge almost died at a party. He stopped breathing and collapsed, with his blood-alcohol content measuring 0.48, according to a 1992 Bloomington Herald-Times report.

IU expelled the fraternity from campus. ATO was reinstated in 1994 as a substance-free house.

In 2010, the national organization kicked more than 100 members out of the fraternity after IU requested an investigation into hazing and alcohol violations. Fewer than 20 of the 126 active members at IU were allowed to remain.

The Indiana Daily Student examined the fraternity's culture in an in-depth report published in April. The story describes ATO as "one of IU’s most infamous fraternities," beleaguered by periods of social probation, ethics cases and at least one allegation of sexual assault last year.

The president of the fraternity told the campus newspaper that he hoped to help ATO shake its notorious reputation.

"I think it’s more of a blow to the Greek system than IU itself," said Haas, one of the IU students. "I'm sure these aren't the only guys who do this kind of stuff, not only here, but everywhere."

IU has hardly been alone in grappling with bad behavior among fraternities and sororities.

In March, Purdue University suspended a fraternity for two years after reports of hazing, drug use and underage drinking. That was preceded by the suspension of another fraternity in February after a student member was accused of raping a visitor — an incident that prompted a ban on hard liquor at fraternity events.

Other Big Ten schools have been coming to terms with their own issues.

The University of Michigan this summer pitched the idea of bringing back “house moms” to get fraternities under control. This followed an incident in which a Michigan fraternity trashed a resort in January.

Michigan President Mark Schlissel told the Detroit Free Press on Tuesday that he thinks fraternities and sororities will self-destruct if members don't modify their behavior.

"There is a culture problem not only among students of Greek life but significantly inside of Greek life having to do with the overuse of alcohol, which really does need to be moderated," Schlissel said.

Star reporters Michael Anthony Adams and Robert King, and researcher Cathy Knapp, contributed to this story.

Call Star reporter Madeline Buckley at (317) 444-6083. Follow her on Twitter: @Mabuckley88.