ATLANTA — A new lawsuit is targeting a now-suspended fraternity at Georgia Tech. Two victims want the fraternity held accountable for using the term "rape bait."
The lawsuit alleges misconduct at Phi Kappa Tau that led to rape at the frat house and that the national organization missed several warning signs.
The lawsuit filed Thursday against a fraternity adviser and fraternity accused (them) of creating a culture that encouraged rape.
Attorney B.J. Bernstein represents two women who say they were plied with alcohol and raped in the Phi Kappa Tau house on Georgia Tech's campus.
"The fraternity and the fraternity adviser -- all those adults, all those people who were watching (the) fraternity -- were asleep at the wheel," Bernstein said.
Last year, the fraternity's social chair was accused of sending out an instructional email titled "luring your rapebait."
Bernstein says it was all recorded in meeting minutes. She also says the frat took aim at a vigil for rape victims to pick up girls.
"There was a special thing on campus to protect women who were victims of sexual violence suggesting that would be a good place to go and get rapebait," Bernstein said. "It's stunningly bad."
In a statement the fraternity wrote that they were disappointed that the plaintiffs "chose to exploit the hypersensitivity of today's college environment toward sexual assault by drafting the complaints in a manner that sensationalizes completely inappropriate statements."
Bernstien says the frat also sang traditional songs that included lyrics about violence against women. She says this is just the start.
"We'll go through the process of digging and finding out more. And getting people under oath to really tell the truth," Bernstein said.
The national body of Phi Kappa Tau says they take these charges very seriously and say that's why they moved to have the Georgia Tech chapter shut down.