photo by: Sylas May/Journal-World

The Delta Upsilon fraternity house is pictured near the University of Kansas campus on Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2026.

One of the organizations named in a lawsuit over alleged hazing and “torture techniques” at a University of Kansas fraternity house has filed its response to the allegations, denying that it had any control over what went on at the chapter.

The lawsuit was filed in July in Douglas County District Court against multiple organizations and individuals associated with the University of Kansas chapter of Delta Upsilon. As the Journal-World reported, it alleged that the fraternity, which has a history of hazing-related incidents and suspensions, subjected one of its pledges in 2025 to “waterboarding with feces-contaminated ice water,” forced binge drinking, acts of violence and harassment and intimidation even after he left the chapter.

On Sept. 4, one of the fraternity-related defendants filed its answer to the complaint. This defendant is formally known as Alumni of Kansas Chapter of Delta Upsilon, and on its Facebook page, it lists itself under the category “Sorority & Fraternity.”

In the complaint, the plaintiff alleged that this organization and the international Delta Upsilon organization were negligent, and that they “had formed a special relationship” with the pledge “sufficient so that they owed him a duty of care.” The plaintiff also alleged that the organizations failed to train and monitor their members properly, and that they were “acting by and through their active members, servants, employees and/or agents … at the time of the negligent acts.”

Alumni of Kansas Chapter of Delta Upsilon disputes this. In its response, it states that it “did not possess, occupy, manage, supervise, operate, or control the day-to-day activities” at the fraternity house and did not approve of or organize “any of the alleged hazing activities described.”

It also claims that the individual fraternity members named in the suit were “independent third parties” over whose actions it had no control.

“The individuals alleged to have engaged in the conduct described in the Petition, including chapter officers, members, pledges, pledge trainers, pledge masters, and other participants, were not agents, employees, servants, representatives, partners, joint venturers, or authorized actors of (Alumni of Kansas Chapter of Delta Upsilon),” the response reads. “(Alumni of Kansas Chapter of Delta Upsilon) did not possess the right to control the manner or means by which such individuals conducted their activities.”

Alumni of Kansas Chapter of Delta Upsilon states roughly 60 times in its answer that it either denies allegations or does not need to respond to them. It does state that it owned the fraternity house, but denies that it “exercised control over said property” or that it “operated, oversaw, and/or otherwise managed the fraternity organization.”

It also says that it didn’t undertake “any duty to supervise, administer, manage, control, or regulate the undergraduate chapter’s pledge activities, membership process, risk-management functions, or day-to-day operations,” and thus shouldn’t be held liable in any of those areas.

As the Journal-World has reported, Delta Upsilon’s KU chapter has been sanctioned for hazing before. It was suspended by KU in 2018 after members reported practices such as sleep deprivation, forced alcohol consumption and acts of violence. Several years later, it was reopened, but this year it was sanctioned again and put on probation until May 12, 2028, for “Hazing” and “Harm to Persons,” according to KU’s student organizations website.

The lawsuit is seeking damages in excess of $75,000 for assault and battery, negligence and infliction of emotional distress.

One other defendant had filed an answer as of Thursday: a member of the fraternity who the suit says was responsible for “pledge education” activities. He also denied all of the allegations against him. The international fraternity organization requested and was granted an extension for its response, and its deadline to file it is Sept. 30.