Frat suspended Isaacman before shooting

DeKALB – Northern Illinois University student Zachary R. Isaacman already was suspended from the Phi Kappa Theta fraternity for his behavior when he shot a fellow student on campus last week.

"He'd been exhibiting behavior that is inconsistent with the code of a brother," Kevin Lampe, national president of Phi Kappa Theta, said Thursday. "I feel proud of our brothers [at NIU] because they obviously saw the actions of this young man and became concerned. They felt they needed to suspend him, and they acted swiftly and maturely."

Isaacman, 22, was living in a room at the fraternity house, 910 W. Hillcrest Drive, in DeKalb before his arrest Feb. 19. Police say Isaacman shot Brian Mulder, 24, of Marengo in the leg around 3:30 a.m. that morning outside Stevenson North residence hall towers. Isaacman remains in the DeKalb County Jail on $500,000 bond.

NIU police executed a search warrant on the day of Isaacman's arrest and confiscated several weapons from his room at the house, DeKalb County Assistant State's Attorney Stephanie Klein said. They seized an AK-47 assault rifle, a Remington shotgun, an AR-15 rifle and a .357-caliber Magnum revolver, she said.

Lampe said weapons never are permitted in Phi Kappa Theta chapter houses as part of the fraternity's "strict risk management policy." Those moving in have their rooms checked to ensure they are not in possession of arms, he said.

"If they are found, the weapons are to leave and there is a number of disciplinary things that the chapter can do, up to and including expulsion of that brother from the chapter," Lampe said, noting that none of Isaacman's fraternity brothers knew he had the guns.

Isaacman has since been expelled from the chapter, but not yet evicted from the home. In order to evict him, Phi Kappa Theta members will have to notify the landlord for the residence because Isaacman has an individual lease for his room, Lampe said.

All fraternity and sorority houses near NIU are privately owned, said Angela Dreessen, the university's director of student and leadership involvement. Greek Affairs is a sector of Dreessen's department.

"Some of the houses have local landlords but others have housing corporations related to the national organizations," Dreessen said. "It's not the university's property, so we have no authority. ... It's just like students that live in apartments in town. We can't go in and do inspections."

The fraternity and sorority residences are considered boarding, or licensed rooming, houses by the City of DeKalb, said Lou Larson, building inspector. So while NIU does not have authority to conduct inspections, city officials do.

"Annual inspections are a requirement of keeping a license," Larson said, noting that the DeKalb Fire Department assists in ensuring buildings meet safety codes.

Homes must have smoke detectors and marked emergency exits, Larson noted.

"Any time there are ... a lot of arms or something like that, the police are always informed of that," Larson said, adding that weapons are not what officials are inspecting for. "But that's usually something we don't see because tenants keep them well hidden from us."

The university issued Isaacman an immediate temporary sanction Feb. 19 that essentially suspends him from NIU. A motion to reduce his bond was denied Tuesday morning. His next scheduled court date is March 23.