A former San Diego State Student is suing a fraternity over an alleged hazing incident his lawyers say almost killed him.
The lawsuit filed on behalf of Benjamin Brennan states the alleged incident occurred on April 16, 2021, when he was rushing to become part of Kappa Sigma Fraternity.
According to the civil complaint, at least nine members of the local chapter of Kappa Sigma led the incident where Brennan consumed an excessive amount of alcohol and ended up with blood alcohol content more than six times the legal driving limit.
The suit states the named members of Kappa Sigma brought Brennan to a hospital and lied about his whereabouts before leaving him there.
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"He was in the hospital for several days fighting for his life. Thank God he did survive, but after that, he had a new life, and that life has not been very pretty as he suffers from severe cognitive impairment now, which is no surprise. He has significant PTSD, severe they say, he’s anxious all the time and he couldn’t go back to school. He tried and he can’t do it," said attorney James Frantz, part of the Frantz Law Group who filed the lawsuit.
Frantz said Brennan can't return to school or work and they are suing for monetary damages including legal fees, economic loss and medical bills.
As the civil suit plays out, attorney Michael Perez says criminal charges may be in the future.
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"The San Diego Police Department has conducted an investigation and it is our understanding and belief that the investigation was recently concluded, and it has now been referred to the District Attorney’s Office for charging decisions," Perez said.
Kappa Sigma’s SDSU Chapter was suspended during the time of the incident and was later expelled in 2022.
"At SDSU, we expect all of our students to uphold our institutional values, and for our students to also honor the policies of their local and national chapters and the distinct values of their organizations,” San Diego State University Media Relations Department said.
Frantz said 19 people were in Brennan's pledge class and say at least seven of the students involved in the incident were suspended from SDSU.
NBC 7 reached out to Kappa Sigma's national organization and the local chapter but has not yet heard back.
The civil lawsuit can be found below:
