A campaign party at the Delta Tau Delta fraternity house early Saturday morning followed rules for registered parties at GW and Joint Elections Committee campaign regulations, fraternity and JEC officials said.
“Everything was by the books for this thing,” said Bob Simon, Delta Tau Delta president and SA presidential candidate.
Advertised as a “rock the vote” event, Simon said all SA candidates were invited to attend and promote their campaigns.
At about 12:30 a.m., Metropolitan Police officers arrived at the party
and arrested ten people for underage drinking after responding to a complaint.
The party was registered with Student Judicial Services Friday, according to the Center for Alcohol and other Drug Education Web site. Registration requirements for events in which alcohol will be served necessitate the presence of outside security personnel and forbid the use of false identification.
“Eighteen and over (are) allowed in and, if you are over 21, you can drink. That is the way it is with any club in the city,” Simon said. “Why should we be held to a higher standard than the clubs and bars in this city?”
The party did not violate campaign regulations of the JEC charter even though guests received free beer because more than one candidate was present, JEC chair Josh Hiscock said.
“The bribery clause as it is stated (in the charter) applies only when there is an event with something like pizza, but for only one candidate,” he said. “Since the party was open to all candidates there is no way that this clause could be applied.”
Hiscock said the JEC will not investigate the incident because no complaints were filed about the event.
“There have been no complaints filed with the JEC about the event,” he said. “The JEC has nothing to do with the alcohol violations as there is nothing in the charter on it.”
Partygoers said they questioned the motives of MPD officers who entered and broke up the party.
“It’s suspicious how the cops just showed up, someone must have called them,” sophomore Delta Tau Delta member Tom Buontempo said.
Simon said he is not responsible for underage drinking at the party.
“We did everything that we could to stop people from drinking if they were underage,” he said, adding that security guards took ten fake IDs at the door. “Some people may have been under 21, but if they were drinking they were breaking the rules, it is their responsibility.”
