Sexual assault lawsuit against Fiji to be settled

Makéna Solberg’s attorney submitted an email outlining that a settlement had been reached in her lawsuit against former Phi Gamma Delta members, also known as FIJI, for alleged sexual assault of Solberg in September 2020 .

After four years of lawsuits highlighting the culture surrounding sexual assault on college campuses and in fraternities, the settlement would close the case against Fiji and prevent a jury trial planned for Nov. 5 in Tama County.

Solberg accused three former members of FIJI, Carson Steffen, Jacob Meloan and Broc Hawkins, of allegedly sexually assaulting Solberg while she was drunk at a party hosted by the fraternity.

The lawsuits alleged that there were video recordings and photos of the attack, which were distributed among Fijian members and on social media, according to court documents.

On September 5, 2020, Solberg was publicly identified as a victim of sexual assault through a change.org petition that garnered over 80,000 signatures and sparked several protests on campus in 2021.

One of these protests had over 2,000 demonstrators They gather in front of the FIJI house, break windows and spray paint on the building. The protesters called on the UI to remove the FIJI chapter.

The FIJI house endured $200,000 in damagesaccording to court documents. A request from the defense was granted in August 2023 to relocate the process to Tama County due to extensive media coverage.

District Judge Kevin McKeever wrote in the filing that while sexual assault cases can result in heightened emotions, they would not normally result in media coverage of this magnitude.

The trial was postponed several times until the date of November 5th was finally set. As litigation continued, lawsuits were increasingly dropped.

In January, Solberg filed a separate lawsuit against Broc Hawkins for distributing video footage of the attack was rejected with prejudicemeaning Solberg couldn’t refile. The filing did not provide details of the firing.

Over the summer, the lawsuit was also filed against Jacob Meloan, who was allegedly involved in the attack dropped with prejudices.

RELATED: Former UI student has FIJI and a fraternity brother barred from sexual assault lawsuit

Since a settlement is now pending in the lawsuit against Carson Steffen, no further litigation is scheduled in this case. The settlement announcement did not provide details of an agreement between the two parties.

The resulting dismissal of the four-year-old sexual assault allegations has led to changes in the university’s approach to Greek life and sexual assault.

The university now requires fraternities and sororities to participate in violence prevention Workshop. Over 2,000 members took part in the workshop last year.

Resources for sexual assault on campus have also changed in recent years. The user interface passed over The Rape Victim Advocacy Program services for the local nonprofit organization called the Domestic Violence Intervention Program launched in early October.

This change reduced the number of sexual assault advocates on campus to two, now housed at the Women’s Resource Action Center on Clinton Street.

According to the most recent crime report released each year by the UI, these are sexual assaults increased in 2023. Compared to 2022, rape cases doubled in 2023 with a total of 51 incidents reported.

However, that number was still lower than the 54 reported rapes in 2021. Mark Bullock, Vice President of Campus Safety told The Daily Iowan They found in 2023 that more than half of sexual assaults were committed by one person over several years, driving the numbers up.

Bullock did not confirm the person’s identity, but said the person was a member of the UI Health System.

James Burkhalter, a former UI social worker, is currently charged with nine counts of sexual exploitation by a counselor or therapist that allegedly occurred between 2019 and 2022.

In the FIJI case, both parties must file formal settlement documents within 60 days of the settlement notice, otherwise the matter will be referred to a judge for further consideration. Steffen’s lawyer Leon Spies declined a request for comment until the formal settlement was presented.