Former Student Sues College of Charleston and Fraternity, Alleging She was Drugged and Raped

Pinterest College of Charleston A former freshman at the College of Charleston in South Carolina has filed a civil lawsuit naming the school and one of its fraternities, alleging she was drugged and raped at an off-campus party last August. The lawsuit, a copy of which was obtained by PEOPLE, was filed with the Charleston County Court on Dec. 16. In it, the alleged victim says she was only 17 when she attended an Aug. 27 party organized by the Chi Omicron chapter of Alpha Epsilon Pi, an international Jewish fraternity. The suit alleges two of the fraternity’s brothers — identified as Timothy Seppi and James West III — forced her into a bedroom and raped her. The suit alleges that, once all three were inside the bedroom, Seppi and West locked the door before stripping her naked and forcing her to ingest illicit drugs. The lawsuit further alleges Seppi used his cell phone camera to record the assault. • Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Click here to get breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases in the True Crime Newsletter. According to the suit, both defendants allegedly “became annoyed” when the student kept trying to flee, and left her alone on the floor, “crying on the bedroom floor with no clothes.” The suit alleges she had to be hospitalized after the attack, and continues to receive treatment for injuries. (PEOPLE is choosing not to name the alleged victim.) Soon after the incident, the alleged victim dropped out of school and returned home to another state, where she is living with her parents. Charleston Police arrested West and Seppi after the alleged assault. • Pick up PEOPLE’s special edition True Crime Stories: Cases That Shocked America, on sale now, for the latest on Casey Anthony, JonBenét Ramsey and more. Seppi has been charged with two counts of exploitation of a minor while West faces one count of engaging a child for sexual performance. Authorities claim more charges could be filed as the results of other testing are returned. It wasn’t clear Wednesday if either defendant had retained legal counsel or entered a plea. In response to the allegations, College of Charleston officials instituted a ban on alcohol at all Greek social functions. The lawsuit seeks unspecified damages. It alleges policies enacted by the school and the fraternity failed to protect the victim. “The Defendants’ negligence, gross negligence, recklessness, willfulness, and wantonness created a hazard and danger which proximately caused the Plaintiff to sustain serious personal injuries,” reads the suit. A College of Charleston spokesperson tells PEOPLE the institution does not comment on pending litigation.

Former Student Sues College of Charleston and Fraternity, Alleging She was Drugged and Raped Find more on: www.cellulitesolutions.org

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