ASU SAE Lawsuit: Hazing Claims, Defendants, and Damages

The ASU SAE lawsuit most people are searching for is a January 2026 case in which two former Arizona State University students accuse Sigma Alpha Epsilon of three months of violent hazing during the spring 2024 pledge period, including waterboarding, forced drug use, and beatings with wooden paddles. It is the second suit filed against the chapter in under six months. A September 2025 case brought by a female ASU student alleges fraternity members recorded and circulated a nonconsensual nude video of her as part of a hazing ritual.¹²

What the January 2026 Hazing Lawsuit Alleges

Former pledges Devin Stevens and Spencer Brajevic, both sophomores who entered SAE’s recruitment process in January 2024, filed the 76-page complaint on January 21, 2026, in Maricopa County Superior Court. The alleged conduct spans roughly three months and took place at fraternity-connected homes in Tempe and Mesa. None of the allegations have been proven in court.¹³

The complaint’s most serious allegation describes pledges being taken to a bathroom members had nicknamed “Auschwitz,” where they were made to stand in a cold shower with rags over their mouths while water was poured onto the cloth and sprayed into their mouths. On what the complaint calls “Punishment Night,” pledges were allegedly struck with wooden paddles hard enough to cause welts and scarring.¹³

Other physical rituals described in the suit include a “human bridge” exercise in which members walked across pledges held in plank positions, “jousting” that reportedly caused a back injury when one pledge fell from another’s shoulders and left another falling through a glass window, and filmed episodes the complaint calls “Weatherman Videos” involving eggs launched with hockey sticks, freezing water, and taser shocks. One pledge allegedly ended up in the emergency room with abdominal cramping and loss of bowel control after being forced into a second gym workout.¹

The complaint also alleges forced drug and alcohol use. Pledges were pressured to binge drink until they vomited and to consume cocaine, ketamine, and psychedelic mushrooms, along with live fish, raw meat, and excessive nicotine. The suit says at least one pledge became unresponsive. Brajevic claims he was forced to drive while intoxicated and was subsequently arrested for drunk driving. A separate episode involved cheeseball snacks rated at 2.2 million Scoville heat units shared with only a half-gallon of water among roughly two dozen pledges, followed by mandatory exercise.¹

Beyond the physical allegations, the suit says pledges were treated as personal servants, required to set up and clean parties, drive members, do their laundry, and pay for alcohol and supplies, with one pledge reportedly spending more than $8,000 on fraternity-related expenses. The complaint also describes a ritual in which pledges could avoid bed-making duties by secretly recording women in their beds and sending the footage to members without the women’s knowledge or consent.¹

Defendants, Claims, and Damages

The lawsuit names SAE’s national organization, the ASU chapter, and 54 individual fraternity members. Arizona State University itself is not a defendant. The plaintiffs bring claims for negligence, gross negligence, negligent supervision, and intentional infliction of emotional distress, and they are seeking compensation for physical injuries, educational setbacks, emotional and psychological harm, and medical expenses. Their attorney, Jeremy Goad, said the plaintiffs “look forward to presenting the facts in court and advancing meaningful accountability.”¹⁴³

The Earlier September 2025 Nonconsensual Video Lawsuit

Four months before the hazing case, a female ASU student sued the same chapter in Maricopa County Superior Court. Her complaint alleges an SAE member recorded a nude video of her during a sexual encounter at a Halloween party in November 2023 and distributed it to more than 170 chapter members in a group chat called “Spring 25 Brotherhood.” She says she did not learn the video existed until March 2025, when another member found it in the chat.²⁵

The suit describes the recording as part of a longstanding hazing tradition requiring pledges to share intimate images of women, and it names the ASU chapter, the national SAE organization, and seven individual members. Claims include negligence, intentional infliction of emotional distress, and defamation. According to the complaint, the chapter’s executive board initially tried to destroy evidence and intimidate the plaintiff before suspending the member who made the recording, though he was allegedly still permitted to live in fraternity housing afterward. An attorney for that member said his client “denies the allegations and looks forward to clearing his name in court.”²⁵

ASU’s Response and the Chapter’s Status

Arizona State placed the SAE chapter on interim suspension in April 2025 and formally suspended it in October 2025, following the September lawsuit. Members living in the chapter’s house in ASU’s Greek Leadership Village were relocated to other on-campus housing. After the January 2026 hazing suit was filed, ASU spokesperson Jerry Gonzalez confirmed that the “new allegations are being investigated” and directed students with information to the Dean of Students office. ASU President Michael Crow told reporters in October 2025 that he was unaware of the earlier nonconsensual video lawsuit when asked about it.⁴³²

As of early 2026, both lawsuits remain active in Maricopa County Superior Court, with no public indication of settlement discussions or trial dates. The national SAE organization had not publicly responded to either suit or to media inquiries about the chapter. No criminal charges tied to the alleged hazing have been reported.³⁴

Prior Expulsion and Arizona’s Hazing Law

This is not SAE’s first removal from ASU. The chapter was expelled and lost university recognition in 2013 after a series of hazing incidents, including the November 2012 death of freshman Jack Culolias. Investigators determined Culolias drowned in Tempe Town Lake after falling into the water during a hazing ritual intended to initiate him into the fraternity; his body was recovered 16 days later.⁶

Culolias’s death eventually led to Arizona HB 2322, known as “Jack’s Law,” which Governor Doug Ducey signed on August 11, 2022, and which took effect on September 24, 2022. Arizona was among the last states to criminalize hazing. Under the statute, hazing is a class 1 misdemeanor, hazing that results in death is a class 4 felony, and a victim’s consent is not a valid defense.⁶⁷ The chapter later returned to campus, though the date of its rechartering is not clear from available records.⁴

1
Phoenix New Times. ASU Frat Hazing Lawsuit: Waterboarding, Spicy Cheeseballs
2
The State Press. ASU SAE Fraternity Lawsuit
3
People. Arizona Frat Sued Over Alleged Hazing, Waterboarding
4
The State Press. SAE Lawsuit and Removal
5
Phoenix New Times. ASU Student Says Frat Shared Her Nude Video in Hazing Ritual
6
12News. Arizona Anti-Hazing Bill Signed Into Law
7
Arizona Legislature. A.R.S. § 13-1215