Suit against University of Iowa fraternity was dropped following a settlement

Iowa City, Iowa – The case involving a sexual assault accusation against a University of Iowa fraternity and one of its members is now closed.

According to the Iowa City Press-Citizen, a resolution to the lawsuit against Jacob Meloan has been reached.

Makena Solberg’s attorneys allege in the case that in September 2020, during a party at Fiji, she was sexually assaulted by two Fiji members, one of whom was Meloan, while she was intoxicated.

According to the lawsuit, the two males assaulted the plaintiff after allegedly “planning and conspiring to lure Plaintiff into one of their bedrooms at the residence.”

Defendants Meloan and Carson Steffen, the other person accused of raping Solberg, were aware of or should have been aware of the men’s having “filmed or photographed the sexual activity without Plaintiff’s consent and while she was in an intoxicated, physically impaired, and physically vulnerable state,” the statement continues.

The two guys allegedly subsequently freely distributed those images and videos around the fraternity members and other people.

According to the lawsuit, Solberg was unaware of the photos and video that were becoming viral for several days after the incident, at which point she was alerted by a friend.

The Iowa City Press-Citizen was informed by Solberg’s attorney that the dispute had been settled through mediation between the fraternity and Solberg.

Following a settlement struck on Monday, the case against Jacob Meloan was also voluntarily dismissed, as reported by the Press-Citizen.

Only a few weeks before the trial was scheduled to begin, the dismissal occurred.

Police at the University of Iowa conducted an investigation but did not bring any charges related to sexual assault.

Carson Steffen is the only defendant that is still involved in the litigation.

There is a first-degree harassment charge against Steffen. It is said that he shared a picture of the event on Snapchat.

His trial is scheduled for December.