Members of the University of Wisconsin Interfraternity Council and Panhellenic Association are taking “corrective action” against the Greek Judicial Board due to a complaint filed with IFC that questions the nature of several justices’ appointments.
The complaint, filed with IFC in April by members of the Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity, alleges the selection committee was not properly convened in the manner dictated by bylaws.
According to Jake Langbecker, IFC vice president of public relations, the complaint marked the first time IFC had been alerted of a potential problem. After further review, he said IFC is now under the impression that justices have been incorrectly appointed for at least several years.
“From the information that we have been able to obtain, it has been made apparent to us that not a single justice serving on the Greek Judicial Board was properly selected in accordance with the Greek Judicial Board bylaws,” said Andy Peters, IFC’s vice president of risk management.
According to Langbecker, justices are appointed by a committee that convenes at the beginning of each semester to fill any open seats.
Bylaws state the justice selection committee must be composed of an outgoing justice, the IFC president, the IFC vice president of internal affairs, the Panhellenic president and the Panhellenic vice president.
Coordinator of Fraternity and Sorority Affairs Barb Kautz said in an e-mail to The Badger Herald that Sigma Phi Epsilon filed the complaint because the committee was missing one or more members, making the appointment of several justices potentially invalid. Because the justices were instated incorrectly, she said Sigma Phi Epsilon believes their decisions are not valid and should be overturned.
“We just want to make sure everyone within the Greek system and every organization on campus has a fair trial,” Sigma Phi Epsilon President Jake Strauss said. “We believe the rules should be followed absolutely, but we want to make sure the correct procedures are used.”
According to Peters, while there are specific procedures that can be followed to remove a justice, there is no direction on what actions should be taken if a bylaw is violated.
He went on to say action will be taken after a full proposal or resolution is created by IFC and the Panhellenic Association. Since the complaint is “unprecedented,” Peters said they are taking special care to make sure the situation is fully addressed and applicable to the entire Greek community.
If rulings made this semester are invalidated, a recent decision to place Sigma Phi Epsilon on social probation could be overthrown. According to the results of an April 25 judicial board hearing, Sigma Phi Epsilon was found in violation of the Greek system’s alcohol and party policy for an unregistered March 26 event at the Tau Kappa Epsilon house, where Sigma Phi Epsilon has been housed since a fire destroyed the fraternity’s house last year.
According to Madison Police Department spokesperson Joel DeSpain, police were called to the house at 9:02 p.m. on March 26. They proceeded to cite someone for excessive noise before shutting down the music that was playing.
A complaint was then filed with the Greek Judicial Board, which led to the April 25 hearing. While a decision has been released, Strauss said the chapter is still going through the judiciary process.
He declined to say if the chapter will be filing an appeal.
Strauss did not wish to comment on whether the IFC complaint was filed as a result of their experiences with the Judicial Board in April.
Judicial Board Chief Justice Marshall Snow and Panhellenic Vice President for Public Relations Alli Sipple declined to comment.
