Five Sigma Alpha Epsilon Fraternity Members Charged in Pledge’s Death

Five Sigma Alpha Epsilon Fraternity Members Charged in Pledge’s Death

Noah Domingo died in January 2019 of acute alcohol poisoning at UC-Irvine fraternity house

In January of this year, we reported on yet another fraternity hazing-related death of a new member of the Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity. Yesterday, Orange County (CA) District Attorney Todd Spitzer announced that five former fraternity “brothers” of 19-year-old Noah Domingo have been indicted on misdemeanor charges related to furnishing alcohol to an underage consumer. Those charged were identified as:

• Jonathan Anephi Vu, 22 and a graduate of UC-Irvine, was charged with one misdemeanor count of furnishing an alcoholic beverage to a minor.
• Zavier Larenz Brown, now 21 and currently enrolled at UC-Irvine, has been charged with one misdemeanor count of furnishing alcohol to a minor causing great bodily injury.
• Mohamed Ibragim Kharaev, now 21, Caleb Gavin Valleroy, now 20, and Jonathan Gabriel Villicana, now 21, were charged with a single count of violating the Irvine Municipal Code for allowing a party or gathering where underage drinking is permitted.

According to local and national news media Noah, a “pledge” of the UC-Irvine chapter of Sigma Alpha Epsilon, was found dead in the off-campus fraternity house on the morning of January 19th, 2019. Even though he was a  minor and thus unable to legally purchase alcohol under California law, at autopsy his blood alcohol concentration (BAC) was found to have been 0.331. This level is four times that required to prove a DUI/DWI charge in California.

Quoting a news item by the Associated Press, KNBC-TV of Los Angeles cited a statement by Noah’s family that places the blame for their son’s senseless death squarely on the now-disbanded UC-Irvine chapter of Sigma Alpha Epsilon and the fraternity’s national headquarters.

“The loss of Noah has crushed our family in ways only someone who has lost a child, or a brother, can begin to comprehend. Noah died because he decided to join Sigma Alpha Epsilon. Since Noah’s death, like so many other parents, we have discovered the horrifying truth about fraternity hazing, including the fact that numerous students have died as a result of hazing by SAE and its members.”

SAE: “The Deadliest Fraternity in America”

Sigma Alpha Epsilon has long been known as the “Deadliest Fraternity in America, a fact that his been reported by organizations such as North Carolina Public Radio WUNC and Bloomberg Senior Editor John Hechinger.

According to our in-house fraternity hazing database here at The Doan Law Firm, there have been at least a dozen fraternity hazing deaths or critical injuries involving Sigma Alpha Epsilon and for the last eight years SAE has consistently led the nation as the most frequently suspended or disciplined national college fraternity with over fifty such suspensions or local chapters that have been ordered closed by their host schools!

Was your child injured during fraternity hazing? Contact our fraternity hazing injury lawyer!

The fact that the Orange County District Attorney could only charge the five young men with a misdemeanor charge of providing alcohol to a minor speaks volumes regarding how little most states, and their public education systems, care about the dangers posed by fraternity hazing!

If your child was injured as a result of college fraternity hazing, we encourage you to contact the fraternity hazing lawyer at The Doan Law Firm, a national personal injury law practice with offices located throughout the country to arrange a review of the facts surrounding your child’s injury and a review of the legal options that may be available to you.

When you contact our fraternity hazing injury lawyer, you case review and first consultation with our staff is always free of charge and does not require you to hire our firm as your legal counsel. After our discussion of the options that are available to you, if you decide that a lawsuit against those responsible for your child’s injuries is in order, we are willing to assume full responsibility for all aspects of preparing your case for trial in exchange for a percentage of the final settlement that we will win for you!