Five arrested in yet another brawl in Stillwater

STILLWATER, Okla. (AP) _ Five people were arrested and minor injuries were reported following a brawl outside an Oklahoma State University fraternity, authorities said. <br><br>OSU placed Sigma Nu fraternity

Saturday, September 7th 2002, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

STILLWATER, Okla. (AP) _ Five people were arrested and minor injuries were reported following a brawl outside an Oklahoma State University fraternity, authorities said.

OSU placed Sigma Nu fraternity on interim suspension, which bars the organization from participating as a fraternity in university activities, officials said in a news release.

Officials from the OSU Office of Greek Life met with fraternity officers on Friday to begin an investigation of the incident.

The brawl began after an individual parked in the fraternity parking lot, said Ron Benningfield, public information and crime prevention officer for the Stillwater Police Department.

The person was looking for his keys to move the vehicle when 40 people ran out of the house and started fighting, Benningfield said.

``I have been fielding questions all day about why these guys were arrested and the athletes from last week's incident were not,'' he said.

``The answer is simple _ the injured party from last week's fight refused to press charges against the person who assaulted him and no officers witnessed the assault.''

A fight on Monday began with a dispute between two women and spread to involve some of the men who had also gathered at a Stillwater house.

Police said the fight had ended by the time they arrived. Officer called OSU officials to the scene.

Baseball players Jeffrey Mark Tuttle, 20, and John Andrew Forrest, 21 suffered minor cuts. No one involved in the fight wanted to press charges, so no arrests were made.

On Aug. 23, police arrested OSU basketball players Cheyne Gadson, 22, and Tony Allen, 19, after a riot at a Stillwater restaurant. Police said the incident involved about 300 people and was related to a rivalry between groups from OSU and Langston University.

Two days later, some of the same people fought again at a Stillwater YMCA, Police Chief Norman McNickle said.

Municipal complaints were filed against Michael Andrew Thompson, 18, Jonathan Owen Nordstrom, 20, Joshua Michael Miller, 20, Chance David Branscum, 18 and Tyler Christian Slaith, 21, all of Stillwater, McNickle said.

No formal charges have been filed.