[T]he Burlington Police Department has determined that there was no foul play involved in the February death of University of Vermont student Connor Gage, ruling the death accidental.
Gage, 19, died from hypothermia and acute alcohol intoxication after leaving a large party at the Alpha Epsilon Pi fraternity house on Buell Street. His blood alcohol concentration was .20, which is more than double the legal driving limit for those over 21, which is .08.
The department released its full investigative report, written by Detective Thomas Chenette, Monday.
Gage’s body was found around 10:50 a.m. Feb. 2 in the snow near a fence on North Winooski Avenue. Surveillance camera footage recorded him entering the parking lot alone, police say.
Blood was found on the top of the fence, indicating that Gage had tried to get over the fence before lying down nearby, where his body was later found.
Police spoke with Gage’s roommate, who told them he assumed he had spent the night at a fraternity. The roommate said that Gage spent a lot of time in the room and rarely went out to parties, but that Gage told him he had been invited to a fraternity although he was not interested in rushing the frat.
The police report states that Gage went to AePi after a smaller gathering at another fraternity, Delta Tau Delta. At DTD, two members told police that while they were drinking beer, they were not serving alcohol and that Gage had brought his own. Gage then left that party and walked with a group of four or five others to AePi.
UVM’s investigation into Gage’s death is ongoing. The university announced Friday that all of its recognized fraternities other than DTD are eligible to have their suspensions lifted, pending the submission and approval of individual chapter action plans.
AePi is not recognized by the university as the frat was kicked off campus in 2014 for violating the rules of a suspension for alcohol and hazing violations. It has continued to operate as it remains recognized by its national organization.
At AePi, members told police that they were concerned about getting a noise violation and kicked out everyone not belonging to the frat between 12:30 and 12:45 that morning. They said that no one seemed in distress and none of the house’s residents recognized Gage after police showed them a photo, Chenette wrote.
“They denied serving any alcohol, saying they have a strict internal policy against it,” Chenette wrote.
Gage was drinking a bottle of “maple moonshine” the night of his death, police write. The 750 ml bottle was 75 proof, or 37.5 percent alcohol.
Gage’s stepfather told police that he had given Gage the bottle to pass on to friend who had picked Gage up at the bus station and drove him to campus. The friend said that Gage’s stepfather had told him that he was sending “something special” as a thank-you, but that he didn’t know it was alcohol and didn’t question it when Gage didn’t give him anything.
“He said Gage told him that he was lonely at the school and was considering joining a fraternity to make friends,” Gage’s stepfather’s friend told police.
The students who went to the AePi party with Gage took an Uber back to campus, one told police.
“He said Gage told him he had left his backpack at DTD and was asking if others were walking back,” Chenette wrote. “(Redacted) said no one from the group needed to go back to DTD as they all lived on campus, so they took an Uber and left together.”
Chenette wrote that he had returned to AePi to speak to other members who may have been present at the party, but was referred to the fraternity’s legal counsel and was told the counsel would be drafting a letter on the fraternity members’ behalf.
“The letter will be added to the case when received and any additional information learned will be investigated,” Chenette wrote.
A Connor Gage Never Walk Alone Memorial Fund, aimed at educating young people on mutual accountability and the dangers of exposure to the cold, has raised more than $7,000 since it was launched shortly after his death.
