Sigma Chi fraternity members were charged with minor-in-possession offenses when police broke up an off-campus party Sept. 14, according to a police report.
Sigma Chi President Jacob Salmon said the incident occurred at a private party and that penalties for the members are being administered by the fraternity's executive board.
Because the party was off campus, the Interfraternity Council doesn't have authority to punish the members, Council President Mack Woods said.
According to the state, a first MIP can result in up to a $1,000 fine and 30 hours of community service.
Dean of Students Randy Boeglin said Student Activities is pursuing a code of conduct case against the fraternity.
"Not against the individual members, (but) for what appears to us to be a de facto Sigma Chi fraternity event," Boeglin said. He said Sigma Chi will have a hearing on the charges, and UNM will determine whether the party was a fraternity event.
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If so, UNM could sanction the fraternity, resulting in anything from a warning to a suspension of Sigma Chi's charter, Boeglin said.
The hearing date has not been set, he said.
On Sept. 14, Albuquerque Police Department officers were dispatched to the home rented by Sigma Chi members Adam Ornelas and Michael Choate after receiving a noise complaint, according to the police report.
When the officers asked what the party was for, attendees said it was a Sigma Chi party, which Ornelas and Choate later denied, according to the report.
Ornelas declined to comment.
The report states that drunken attendees over the age of 21 were sent home with a safe ride, and underage partiers were cited.
A girl under 18 was drinking at the party when police arrived, the report states, and her parents were contacted to pick her up. She said the alcoholic drink served to her was called "Sigma Tea," according to the report.
Salmon would not comment on what consequences the members will face from the fraternity.
"We'd rather handle it internally than show off what we do to them, but we are severe in our actions," he said. "People make mistakes, and we are just here to create better men."
All fraternity-related or sponsored activities must comply with federal, state and local laws, according to the fraternity's rules.
Penalties for violating this code can be imposed by five alumni members or an undergraduate chapter. Consequences can include suspension/expulsion from the fraternity, community service and social probation, according to the fraternity's rules.
Chapter adviser Paul Garson said he couldn't say whether the members at the party would be kicked out of the fraternity.
Jonathan Gayer, fraternity adviser for Student Activities, said Sigma Chi is handling the situation well.
"I think that the chapter is dealing with it," he said. "They are taking swift actions to make it an educational moment as well as a serious moment on the lack of tolerance for breaking of their international rules concerning alcohol and things like that."
