3 Students Accused of Rape Won’t Be Charged

The Riverside County district attorney’s office has decided not to file rape charges against three UCLA fraternity members accused of sexually assaulting a sorority woman at a Palm Springs hotel last month, authorities said Wednesday.

Deputy Dist. Atty. Rick Erwood said the case was hampered because the woman had consumed marijuana and alcohol and had been participating in a sexually explicit game prior to the incident at the Royal Sun Hotel. Further complicating the matter, the woman told authorities that she would refuse to testify against the three members of the Zeta Beta Tau fraternity, Erwood said.

“I think she got herself into a situation where things really got out of hand,” Erwood said. “There was obviously some bad judgment on everyone’s part.”

The alleged incident occurred while the three men and the woman were playing “Masters,” a game similar to “Spin the Bottle,” in one of the rooms in the hotel, which was rented by the fraternity on the first weekend in June to celebrate the end of the school year, officials said.

The woman, a 19-year-old sophomore, told investigators she was intoxicated at the time and had allowed the men to disrobe and massage her. At some point, the woman told authorities, the men began to take turns sexually assaulting her. Shortly after the incident, however, the woman’s attorney sent a letter to prosecutors requesting that they drop the case.

Prosecutors set up a meeting with the woman last week and decided not to pursue charges. The woman’s attorney, Vicki Podberesky, has declined to comment on the matter.

“I don’t think we had a reasonable likelihood of getting a conviction,” Erwood said. “Going to someone’s room late in the evening, consuming alcohol, using marijuana, getting involved in a game that has sexual connotations--all those things together would make [sexual assault] tough to prove. It would be hard to get 12 people on a jury to agree that there was no consent in this case.”

Attorneys for the men--Cheyenne Joseph Mount, 20, Kristof Hamrick, 21, and Jack Ripsteen, 21--said their clients are relieved.

“Obviously, we didn’t think any crime had occurred,” said Penny Cooper, Ripsteen’s attorney. “We are very thankful and grateful that the prosecution has seen it the same way.”

Hamrick’s attorney, Gary Scherotter, added: “My client told me that whatever occurred was consensual. I believe him and I still do. If it’s consensual, it ain’t rape.”

Scherotter said the men are angry about the allegations because they feel their reputations have suffered irreparable harm.

“They were unjustly accused,” Scherotter said. “They were arrested. They had to post bail. Their fraternity has been damaged. All over the country, people are wondering about the ZBTs.”

Robert Naples, assistant vice chancellor of student and campus life, said the university launched its own investigation into the fraternity’s Palm Springs party and uncovered possible violations of school and fraternity policies. On Monday, campus administrators sent the fraternity a letter detailing the alleged violations, which Naples said “related to alcohol use and conduct in general.”

Naples said the university will likely hold a hearing in the coming weeks to discuss the matter with the fraternity. If the violations are substantiated, the fraternity could face a range of disciplinary action, from probation to having its charter revoked.

Gary Schwartz, a spokesman for the fraternity, said he would meet with university officials to discuss their concerns, which he says stem from the chapter’s decision to have beer kegs at the Palm Springs event.

But Schwartz added: “Having kegs at a party does not mean that rape was taking place.”

On sorority row, those closest to the victim--sisters in her own house--fumed when they learned that no charges would be sought.

“I’m mad because they didn’t get a slap on the wrist or anything,” said one of the woman’s friends. “It makes me upset because [sexual assaults] happen all the time, in fraternities and outside fraternities.”

ZBT fraternity brothers, meanwhile, greeted the district attorney’s decision with a mixture of relief and enthusiasm. Most said they believed the three men were innocent from the beginning.

“I’m glad, for obvious reasons,” said one 19-year-old member, who spoke on condition that his name not be used. “You don’t want to have people in your house accused of rape.”

“We’re just going to carry on with our lives,” he added. “Of course, we’re always going to remember what happened. But we’re not going to ponder. It’s a lesson to be learned: not to put ourselves in a situation where this can happen.”