The parents of a Navarro Junior College student who died after a night of binge drinking have filed suit against a Baylor fraternity and the bar that hosted their drinking event. In 2010, Megan Helal was a 19-year-old college freshman dating a Sigma Chi fraternity member at Baylor.
In their lawsuit, Helal's family say their daughter went to an initiation part at Mynar's Bar to celebrate the frat's new members. Even though Helal was underage, she was still served alcohol and had anywhere from 10 and 17 drinks in two hours. Helal's boyfriend, the fraternity, the bar's owners and its employees are all named in the lawsuit, which does not designate the specific amount in damages being sought.
It's horrible that any family would have to go through something like this. Binge drinking is a serious problem on college campuses and not one that should be taken lightly. In my opinion as an attorney who handles drunk driving accident cases, I absolutely think the bar that served Megan should be held accountable for their actions. Bars can be held accountable for over serving their patrons – it's called a dram shop claim in some circumstances. In order for restaurants, waiters and bars to avoid this all they need to do is check IDs and not over serve patrons. If only the bar in Waco played by the rules.
Couldn't agree more, well written article.