The Parents Of Riley Strain Are Suing The Owners Of His Fraternity House Because Members Made Jello Shots There Before Bus Trip To Nashville

Well that’s an interesting argument…

There’s no doubt we can’t imagine the grief that the parents of Riley Strain are feeling after their son was killed during a fraternity trip to Nashville last year.

The 22-year old Delta Chi fraternity member at the University of Missouri went missing last March after being asked to leave Luke Bryan’s lower Broadway bar, Luke’s 32 Bridge, and then for some reason walked in the opposite direction of his hotel.

Authorities said at the time there was no sign of foul play, and Luke’s bar released a statement during the search clarifying that he was served only one alcoholic drink and two waters at their bar before being asked to leave. Investigators with the Tennessee Alcoholic Beverage Commission determined that Strain was not visibly intoxicated or overserved at Luke’s, but security at the bar said that the student was “verbally aggressive with staff” and was not allowed to re-enter.

After being kicked out of the bar, Strain’s friends continued partying and said they would meet him back at their hotel that night – but he never made it back, and wasn’t in the room when his fraternity brothers returned at 1:00 AM.

When he hadn’t returned the next day, the friends finally called police to report him missing, setting off a furious search for the student that would end two weeks later when his body was discovered in the river.

The death was ruled an accident, and Nashville Metro Police have since closed their investigation.

According to the toxicology report conducted as part of the autopsy by the Davidson County Medical Examiner, Strain had a blood alcohol content of .228 at the time of his death, nearly 3 times the legal limit to drive of .08. And he was also found to have Delta-9 THC in his system, which is a hemp-derived version of THC that’s legal and widely available in Tennessee.

The report noted that there were no signs of Rohypnol, or roofies, in his system at the time of his death.

But Strain’s family believes that the fraternity, as well as his fellow students, should have done more to protect him, and have filed a lawsuit against Delta Chi fraternity, as well as several of its officers and members – and the owner of the fraternity house.

The Delta Chi fraternity house at the University of Missouri is owned by a company called BCC Missouri, LLC, which is a subsidiary of Barrister Capital Corporation. According to their website:

“Barrister Capital Corporation (BCC) is a not-for-profit international housing corporation that supports the needs of housing for The Delta Chi Fraternity.”

The organization is a 501(c)(7) nonprofit, which provides tax exemptions for social clubs under some circumstances, like those of a fraternity.

According to the lawsuit filed by Strain’s parents, which also names the fraternity and several officers and members, the owners of the fraternity house “had a duty to ensure that its property was not being used for unsafe, dangerous, or illegal purposes.” (Honestly “unsafe, dangerous or illegal purposes” pretty much sums up what goes on in a fraternity house).

The lawsuit claims that members of the fraternity made Jello shots in the house before boarding the bus to Nashville, and that the owners of the house had a duty to ensure that the house was not being used for “preparation of alcoholic drinks that were in excess of 15% ABV and which would fuel drinking on the Delta Chi formal as the buses were traveling from Columbia, Missouri to Nashville, Tennessee.”

The lawsuit claims that fraternity members violated their own policies by serving Strain alcohol that was more than 15% ABV, which fraternity policy prohibits at chapter facilities and events. And by preparing the Jello shots at the house, the family members claim that the owners of the fraternity house were negligent in “failing to monitor how the house was being used” and by “allowing, condoning, or contributing to the use of alcohol greater than 15% ABV in Jello shots.”

The family also claims that the owners of the house were negligent in “allowing Delta Chi members to load Jello shots at the chapter house and then carry those onto charter buses in direct violation of Delta Chi policies and procedures.”

It’s not clear whether the owners of the house were also managing the property or had any staff who supervised what went on inside the frat house, or whether they simply owned the house that the members lived in. Regardless, as a lawyer myself, it’s an interesting case of exactly what duty an owner has to protect those who are living in a property you own – especially in a case like a fraternity house that’s being rented and used for a specific organization with its own rules.

Of course in this case it’s a little unique because the owner of the house is a company that specifically provides housing for Delta Chi fraternity, so there’s an argument that they should be familiar with the fraternity’s policies and are therefore responsible for enforcing them. Interested to see how this one plays out, though I have a feeling it will settle long before a judge ever gets to rule on the merits of the claim.

In their lawsuit, the family is asking for damages related to Strain’s death, including pain and suffering, as well as payment for funeral and medical expenses.

It’s clear that the Strain family is still experiencing unimaginable pain from the death of their loved one, and understandably so. And hopefully holding others accountable for his death will be able to prevent the same tragic situation from unfolding again in the future.