Tabard did not provide the individual arrested with alcohol, Tabard President Paloma Ellis '11 said in a statement, also noting that The Tabard supports Hanover Police's efforts to curb underage drinking.
"We would like to clarify that the Tabard is a dry house and we do not endorse the consumption of alcohol by underage individuals," Ellis said in the statement. "The incident Wednesday night involved beer those individuals had purchased on their own and at this point we only hope that this can be resolved as soon and as cleanly as possible."
Under the law, The Tabard is considered a "corporation or unincorporated association," meaning that the offenses constitute felony charges and carry fines as high as $100,000 for each count.
The Tabard, along with five other Greek organizations, had been previously identified by Hanover Police as having served alcohol to underage individuals, according to the release. Police and prosecutors decided to take no action against the organizations, in light of efforts by College administrators and Greek officials to address concerns about alcohol consumption.
The leaders of the six Greek organizations were informed of the infractions and told that their cases were suspended, but were also warned that if they failed to comply with liquor laws in the future, they would face prosecution for both the suspended charges and any future charges, according to the press release
Acting Dean of the College Sylvia Spears previously declined to specify which organizations were involved in the allegations.
The recent incidents follow Hanover Police Chief Nicholas Giaccone's Feb. 4 announcement that Hanover Police would implement compliance checks, or "sting operations," at Greek organizations to ensure that minors were not being served alcohol. A week later, Hanover Police decided to delay implementation of the compliance checks pending efforts by the College and student groups to reduce unsafe student drinking.
Because of the arrest on Tuesday and the condition placed on the suspension of the previous charge, The Tabard now faces charges for two incidents one relating to the most recent arrest and another in connection to an incident that occurred in April in which an underage or intoxicated individual was served alcohol, according to the release.
Greek organizations are exercising more care to promote responsible behavior in light of the incident at Tabard, Inter-Fraternity Council President Tyler Brace '11 said in an interview.
"I would hope that the police would understand the frats and Greek houses in general can't control every little thing that happens in their houses, no matter how hard they try," Brace said. "That's something that I hope [Hanover Police] will consider when making these kinds of decisions."
The charge against Tabard as an organization highlights how important the actions of a Greek organization's members are, according to Panhellenic Council President Anna Sonstegard '11.
"Everyone is accountable, because the house can be implicated," Sonstegard said in an interview. "They are not charging individuals they are charging the organization."
The most recent incident involving Tabard is a consequence of Dartmouth's open Greek system, Sonstegard said.
"We are trying to address these loopholes in the system it's unfortunate that we didn't have time to implement [the Student and Presidential Alcohol Harm Reduction Committee's findings] before these incidents," she said. "And it is unfortunate that [Hanover Police} is going through with charges that have been suspended."
The student arrested last Thursday, who was not named in the release, has been arrested twice before in the previous two years, according to the release.
Ellis is scheduled to appear before the Lebanon District Court on June 28, the release stated.
The College's Public Affairs Office said in a statement that the recent charges are "deeply disappointing, but unfortunately, not surprising in light of recent events."
The College conducts its own investigation "any time there's a violation of College policy, " director of Safety and Security Harry Kinne said, although he was unsure of the timeline for such an investigation.
Other members of The Tabard declined to comment for this article. Andrew Manns '11, president of Coed Council, also declined comment, citing the ongoing investigation. Giaccone did not respond to requests for comment.
Staff writer Ann Baum contributed reporting to this article.
Tabard Release
