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Beta Theta Pi Asks For DA Stacy Parks Miller To Be Held In Contempt

The former Penn State chapter of Beta Theta Pi fraternity filed a motion Friday asking the Centre County Court of Common Pleas to hold Centre County District Attorney Stacy Parks Miller in contempt, according to The Centre Daily Times.

Parks Miller filed charges including involuntary manslaughter against the fraternity and 18 of its former members earlier this month related to the death of Penn State student Tim Piazza.

Piazza fell down the basement steps numerous times at the Beta Theta Pi fraternity house during bid acceptance night. Fraternity brothers waited nearly 12 hours after his initial fall to call paramedics. Piazza was transported to Mt. Nittany Medical Center and later flown to Hershey Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead.

The Second Motion for Contempt, Sanctions and To Compel asks the court to force Parks Miller to return “a forensic copy of all digital contents of Alpha Upsilon’s property, award attorneys fees to Alpha Upsilon and for appropriate sanctions to end the contempt.” Alpha Upsilon is the Greek letter name of Penn State’s Beta Theta Pi chapter.

The fraternity has been asking for their surveillance footage to be returned, and the motion says Parks Miller did give the fraternity “an external expansion drive containing some limited video footage.”

Footage was retrieved by authorities on February 6. Now, the fraternity says the video Parks Miller gave them “appears to have been modified on or after” February 10.

Surveillance footage from inside the fraternity house played a huge part in the charges Parks Miller filed earlier this month, as what was shown on video painted the full picture of what really happened at the fraternity house that night.

The fraternity also requested Parks Miller release the “factual predicate for each and every count of each and every offense” against the chapter. Attorney Michael Leahey asked for “specific acts, language, or behavior” of each offense and “exact time, date, and place” for every action.

Leahey says the grand jury’s presentment addresses the individuals charged but does not adequately address the “corporate defendant” — the fraternity chapter itself.

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About the Author

Elissa Hill

Elissa was the managing editor of Onward State from 2017-2019. She is from Punxsutawney, PA [insert corny Bill Murray joke here] and considers herself an expert on all things ice cream. Follow her on Twitter (@ElissaKHill) for more corny jokes.

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