March 24 (UPI) -- The family of University of Missouri student Riley Strain has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against his fraternity after he drowned during a trip last year to Nashville.
The lawsuit, which was filed Friday in Boone County and seeks unspecified damages, accuses Delta Chi, the property owner of the fraternity house, two members of the Board of Chapter Advisers and 30 members of the fraternity of negligence in Strain's death.
Strain's body was found in the Cumberland River on March 22, 2024, two weeks after he was kicked-out of Luke's 32 Bridge bar, where he had been drinking with his Delta Chi fraternity brothers, who were in Nashville to attend a formal.
According to the complaint, the annual spring formal involved "prolific consumption of alcohol" with much of it above 15% alcohol by volume, which is banned at Delta Chi fraternity events.
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Medical examiners said Strain, 22, died "as a result of drowning and ethanol intoxication." His blood alcohol level was three times the legal driving limit in Tennessee. The report said cannabis compound Delta-9 THC was also found in his system.
"Rather than having the support of his brothers, Riley was abandoned and alone," the lawsuit states, "instilling a code into its fraternity members that encouraged or taught fraternity 'brothers' to abandon one another instead of helping one another."
"The fraternity brothers did not even think to call Riley's parents, they simply got ready for bed and went to sleep," the suit claims, adding that there was no call made to 911 until police were notified the following day that Strain was missing.
While reports show Strain was not over-served alcohol at any bars in Nashville, the lawsuit claims Delta Chi members planned a formal that was fueled by alcohol. The lawsuit also alleges that the fraternity pressured Strain to attend the formal and encouraged him to consume alcohol throughout the day.
After Strain appeared intoxicated and was kicked out of the bar, the lawsuit alleges his fraternity brothers did not stay with him or help him get back to the hotel. Surveillance video from that night shows Strain stumbling outside as he wandered around Nashville.
"The investigation found that he had become separated from his friends and was noticeably impaired as he walked onto Gay Street adjacent to the Cumberland River," the Nashville Police Department said in a statement during last year's investigation.
The lawsuit alleges the fraternity members were negligent, careless or reckless. It claims Delta Chi's Board of Chapter Advisers were negligent by failing to provide supervision and transportation at the formal.
While Delta Chi has not commented on the lawsuit, the fraternity did release a statement last year, saying it was "deeply saddened by the tragic passing of our esteemed fraternity brother."
