A former University of Oklahoma student filed a lawsuit Sept. 29 alleging he was beaten during a fraternity's 2015 initiation that left him with a "traumatic brain injury."
Blake Novacek is suing the Beta Theta Pi fraternity and others over an incident he alleges happened after pledges were called to the fraternity's house in Norman on Oct. 11, 2015.
Novacek said he was hit in the abdomen with a baseball bat after failing to recite some pledge facts, causing him to hit his head and lose consciousness. The lawsuit said one member threatened to retaliate if Novacek didn't "keep his mouth shut," and his car was vandalized.
The two fraternity members named as defendants deny the accusations. The president of the Beta Theta Pi Corporation of Oklahoma said the lawsuit is "entirely without merit" and released the following statement:
On Monday, we became aware of a lawsuit filed against the Beta housing corporation, our chapter, the Beta General Fraternity and certain of our members. This is the first any of us have heard of any of the plaintiff’s alleged grievances, which supposedly arose two years ago. While we are mystified by the plaintiff’s motivations, we do firmly believe that the subject allegations are false and that the suit’s claims are entirely without merit. We are offended by the allegations, we intend to vigorously contest this action by all legal means at our disposal, and we are confident of vindication.
Novacek, whose father is former Dallas Cowboys tight end Jay Novacek, lives in Texas.
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