BEMIDJI, Minn. - The Beltrami County Attorney's Office charged five men in connection with a large party in the county on Sept. 29.
According to the charges, the men threw a party and provided alcohol to Isaac Jon Morris of Cokato, Minn., even though he wasn't 21.
Bemidji Police say Morris accidently fell from a seventh floor window of Tamarack Hall after drinking alcohol at a large off campus party. An autopsy indicates that he died of significant head trauma.
Investigators say Morris was a visitor to campus and not a BSU student.
The men charged are 18-year-old Bryce Peter Mattson, 18-year-old Jack William Mathison, 19-year-old Aaron Elliot Trebelhorn, 21-year-old Zachary Charles Morse and 21-year-old Jordan Trowbridge Swan. Each is charged with two counts of a gross misdemeanor. The maximum sentence for each man would be two years in jail and a $6,000 fine, according to a press release.
An investigation into the September party in Beltrami County began after Morris fell to his death. The criminal complaint alleges that Mattson and Mathison put $50 in for a keg and Morse went to pick it up. The complaint says they then sold the beer to party-goers by the cup for $5.
The criminal complaint also alleges that Morse went along to get a second keg and video surveillance shows Swan purchasing that second keg from a liquor store.
Morse told investigators he estimated there were about 50 people at the party but didn't know how many of them were minors.
His family released a statement saying, "We are deeply saddened by the loss of our son and brother. Isaac was a child of God who knew his Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. We believe and know that we will see him again in heaven."
Investigators quickly identified and interviewed seven adults who all played a part in hosting and buying alcohol for the gathering. They also located a number of witnesses who saw Morris consuming alcohol at the party, despite the fact he was underage.
Bemidji Police were called to Tamarack Hall around 12:30 a.m. on reports of a person laying on the ground bleeding. Officers found Morris, who appeared to have fallen. Despite lifesaving efforts, the teen died of his injuries.
In the wake of Morris' death, police remind students to think responsibly.