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Photo of Sawyer Updike courtesy Ted B. Lyon & Associates, PC.
AUSTIN, Texas – The parents of a University of Texas at Austin freshman have filed a wrongful death lawsuit over alleged hazing at a fraternity that they say drove their son into a psychological crisis that ended in his death by suicide.
The backstory:
18-year-old Sawyer Updike, from Pearland, was recruited and accepted a bid to pledge Sigma Chi through the Alpha Nu Chapter at the University of Texas at Austin.
The lawsuit alleges that Updike was subjected to several months of “horrific hazing” that broke down Updike’s physical and emotional health.
The alleged hazing was photographed and recorded, and the lawsuit says it included:
Photos of alleged hazing incidents Sawyer Updike was subjected to by Alpha Nu Chapter of Sigma Chi Fraternity. Photo courtesy Ted B. Lyon & Associates, PC.
Spearing a large fishhook through Updike’s legRepeatedly burning Updike with lit cigarettesCoercing and pressuring Updike through fear of cruel punishments to use illegal substances like cocaineForced consumption of gross and dangerous amounts of alcoholPhysical whippings and beatingsPiercing Updike’s hip with a staple gun
Updike, it’s alleged, was subjected to the violent and illegal hazing at the Alpha Nu fraternity house located on Nueces Street in Austin.
The lawsuit states that Updike’s mental state was in jeopardy and deteriorating when on the first day of the second semester of Updike’s freshman year, January 16, 2024, he was given cocaine and psilocybin mushrooms at the fraternity house.
A short time later, the lawsuit states, due to his worsening psychological crisis, Updike drove to a nearby convenience store parking lot and took his own life.Â
What they’re saying:
In a news release, Sawyer’s mother, Sheryl Roberts-Updike says, “I live every day with the weight of his absence. No parent should ever lose a child, and certainly not because of hazing disguised as ‘brotherhood.’ What happened to Sawyer was cruel, senseless, and preventable. It is unbearable to know that a young man with so much promise was put through something so dangerous in the name of belonging.”
“Sawyer’s death will not be in vain. Hazing is illegal for a reason, and its consequences are not hypothetical — they are tragic, permanent, and shattering. I want every parent of a college-bound child to understand the risks that can be hidden behind Greek letters and long-standing traditions. If speaking out saves even one family from this kind of heartbreak, then Sawyer’s light will continue to shine in this world,” Roberts-Updike adds.
Dig deeper:
The alleged hazing of Updike happened while the Alpha Nu Chapter was on probation at the University of Texas for hazing pledges the previous year, the lawsuit says.
The wrongful death lawsuit names Sigma Chi International Fraternity, Alpha Nu Chapter of Sigma Chi Fraternity at the University of Texas at Austin, Alpha Nu House Corporation (owner of the fraternity house), and five fraternity members, including the then chapter president of Alpha Nu.
The other side:
FOX 7 Austin has reached out to the University of Texas at Austin for comment about the lawsuit and will update this story when a response is received.
The Source: Information from email form Robert Riggs and news release from Ted B. Lyon & Associates, PC.