Frat Brothers Scrawled Slurs All Over CU Student's Body

BOULDER, Colo. -- The family of the University of Colorado student who died of alcohol poisoning last month are considering filing a civil suit in the case, saying that his fraternity brothers didn't help him but instead scrawled slurs all over his body.

The family of "Gordie" Bailey Jr. said they are unsure who would targeted by the suit or on what grounds, but are considering suing the fraternity, the individuals involved and the university.

Bailey was found dead in the Chi Psi house following a night of heavy drinking as part of a fraternity initiation.

A coroner revealed that after Bailey had passed out, his fraternity brothers marked up his arms, legs and trunk with racial and sexual slurs, said the young man's father, Lynn Gordon Bailey.

"This reinforces the nearly unbearable pain of the whole thing," Bailey said. "Was he dying while they were writing that?"

Bailey said the phrasings on his son's body include "It sucks to be you," and "(Expletive) me." He also said the were also drawings of male genitalia on his son's body and the word "B***ch" on the fingers of his right hand.

When it became apparent that the 18-year-old was not breathing, and police were going to be called in to investigate, someone tried to wipe off the slurs that were written on his face with a felt-tip marker, police said.

Some local fraternity members have declined to cooperate with police and some have hired lawyers, which has impeded the investigation, Boulder police said.

CU's Chi Psi fraternity's was shut down this week at the request of the university.

Bailey's death last month and three similar deaths around the nation have focused attention on drinking at fraternities and among students in general.

"We still don't see any leadership from the university. They have not proposed any change in the system -- but the system is killing our kids," said Michael Lanahan, Gordie Bailey's stepfather. "This is not about binge drinking; it's about hazing at fraternities. How lucky is Chi Psi that 26 pledges survived?"

CU spokeswoman Pauline Hale said the administration is "continuing to work with the fraternity and sorority leaders to assess all aspects of Greek life, including the role of alcohol in social activities."

Bailey and the other pledges had begun the evening Sept. 16 blindfolded and abandoned in the woods near Gold Hill. Police said the pledges were told to drink large amounts of Ten High whiskey and Carlo Rossi wine.

Later, when they were driven back to the fraternity house after midnight, Bailey had passed out. Fraternity tradition called for members to write on the body of any pledge who passed out without taking his shoes off, a police search warrant said.

The next morning Bailey was found face down on the floor, and could not be revived. His blood-alcohol level was 0.328 percent, four times the legal limit for driving in Colorado.

The coroner told Bailey's father that the alcohol had created a massive depressant that shut down his son's central nervous system.

The death came less than two weeks after the death of Samantha Spady of Beatrice, Neb., a 19-year-old sophomore at Colorado State University in Fort Collins. She died of alcohol poisoning after consuming 30 to 40 beers and vodka drinks in 11 hours, authorities said. Her body also was found in a fraternity house.

Bradley Kemp, 20, died earlier this month after drinking with fraternity brothers at the University of Arkansas. Officials said he died of an accidental overdose after mixing cold medicine and alcohol.

And University of Oklahoma student Blake Hammontree, 19, died after a night of drinking with members of the Sigma Chi fraternity.