Charges dropped against man accused of interfering with University of Iowa hazing investigation

IOWA CITY — A Johnson County judge has dismissed the case against a man accused of interfering with police who were investigating allegations of hazing at a University of Iowa fraternity a year ago on Nov. 15, 2024.

The court’s dismissal comes after prosecutors last week made an oral motion to drop the charge of interference with official acts against Joseph Antonio Gaya following a one-day trial during which his attorneys questioned the evidence and its sufficiency in meeting the standards of the alleged crime.

“No reasonable jury could find that the ‘investigation’ was hindered given Officer (Brad) Millikan’s own testimony that he was not,” according to Gaya’s motion for acquittal, filed at 7 p.m. Nov. 4 — following the one-day trial in his case. “The court’s inclination that the case should be dismissed is correct: there was no actual or constructive force, no threats, and even the nebulous ideas put forth by the prosecution do not establish that Officer Millikan’s actual duties and/or acts were hindered.”

According to Gaya’s defense team, the state statute requires either physical interference or a threat of physical interference to qualify as interference with official acts.

“Mere verbal statements or harassment, without accompanying physical actions or threats, do not meet the statutory definition of interference,” according to a Gaya motion. “The statute specifies that ‘resist’ and ‘obstruct’ do not include verbal harassment unless it is accompanied by a present ability and apparent intention to execute a verbal threat physically.”

And that, according to Gaya’s defense, did not happen when police were called to the Alpha Delta Phi fraternity house at 703 N. Dubuque St., where they found 57 men splattered with food in a basement storage room.

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Per the original complaint and subsequent court documents, UI police saw empty beer cans and men using a squeegee to clean up a room where 36 pledge members lined the perimeter wearing neck ties over their eyes as blindfolds.

“They were all covered with what seemed like food products like ketchup and mustard and alcohol,” according to the court documents that described the scene as “disturbing.”

As officers tried to investigate by interviewing both fraternity members and pledges, Gaya stood in front of them — blocking a doorway and refusing to move, according to the original complaint.

Later, when officers were talking to witnesses, Gaya stood between them and told witnesses not to talk to police, according to his charging documents.

When an officer asked Gaya to step away, he shot back, “You can (expletive) leave, how about that?” according to the complaint that described witnesses as eventually telling Gaya they were fine and to leave the fraternity house — given he didn’t live there.

Gaya’s attorneys referenced some of his language and obstinate behavior in defending him against the specific charge of interference.

“Testifying to defendant’s attitude, swearing, etc., are unduly prejudicial, irrelevant, and likely to confuse the jury,” according to Gaya’s defense, which argued he “cannot be convicted of anything other than physical resistance or a threat to Officer Milikan in the performance of his official duties.”

The defense specifically objected to video evidence showing Gaya using a slur, “which would be unfairly prejudicial.”

“The state is not claiming that this slur is the ‘threat’ to officer Millikan,” according to the defense. “And this portion of the video relates to Officer Ford, who is not in close vicinity to Officer Millikan, who is the subject of the interference.”

It also objected to a moment caught on camera when officers asked for Gaya’s name.

“The defense anticipates that the state may insinuate that Joseph Gaya gave the name ‘Jose’ in an attempt to confuse the jury into thinking that could constitute interference with official acts,” defense attorneys said, promising to “object to any such line of questioning … Moreover, Jose is the Spanish version of Joseph. This line of questioning would unfairly inject racial issues into the trial.”

Although charges against Gaya were formally dropped last week — giving him the chance to expunge it from his record — Alpha Delta Phi in May was suspended for four years, just a year after establishing its first chapter on the UI campus.

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Vanessa Miller covers higher education for The Gazette.

Comments: (319) 339-3158; vanessa.miller@thegazette.com