A former Penn State football player was ordered to pay nearly $1 million in damages last week for injuries police said he inflicted on a former student after throwing him through a fraternity house window in 2001.
Robert "RJ" Luke, a former tight end for the Nittany Lions, did not show up for the civil hearing last Wednesday but was ordered to pay Jude Sandt, of Allentown, $900,000 in damages. Luke's current whereabouts are unknown to the court.
U.S. District Court Judge John E. Jones III made the ruling after a one-day bench trial in Williamsport last Wednesday.
Luke also failed to appear at four depositions prior to Wednesday's trial and has no attorney representation, allowing Jones to issue a default judgment in his absence, according to court documents.
Letters sent to Luke's last known residence in Austin, Texas, have been returned as undeliverable and he left no forwarding address with the court.
Sandt lost full mobility of his fingers after tendons in both of his wrists were severed during the incident.
Jones said that after reviewing medical records and listening to Sandt's testimony, he determined the appropriate amount to be $900,000.
"I take every case as it comes and I'm not going to classify this ruling as high or low," Jones said. "I thought it was consistent with the testimony."
The ruling comes five years after a Centre County jury acquitted Luke and former Penn State linebacker Thurgood "TC" Cosby of criminal charges connected with the fight at Sandt's fraternity, Phi Kappa Psi, 403 Locust Lane, on July 29, 2001.
After a five-week investigation into the fight, the State College Police Department determined that Luke and Cosby physically attacked Sandt at the front door of the fraternity, punching him multiple times and pushing him through two panes of glass.
Police said the fight began when the two football players attempted to enter a party at the fraternity and refused to sign in.
Sandt was sent to the hospital, where he received surgery on both of his hands to repair torn tendons. He also received stitches on his nose.
Luke and Cosby were charged with aggravated assault, simple assault and recklessly endangering another person, but were exonerated of all charges after a four-hour jury deliberation
on April 30, 2002, according to The Associated Press.
Sandt then filed a civil lawsuit against Luke and Cosby in 2004. Cosby was dropped from the suit in 2006.
According to the complaint, Sandt sought monetary damages for the injuries, which included permanent functional deficits, excessive scarring, wage loss, loss of opportunity and mental suffering.
Luke began his Penn State career as a reserve fullback in 1998 before sitting out the 2000 season with a knee injury. After a 2001 season in which he logged a 64-yard touchdown catch and sprint to spark a second-half comeback against Michigan State, Luke was expected to be the top tight end for the following season.
Luke announced that he was transferring to Western Illinois University two weeks after being cleared of the charges, issuing a statement through the Penn State sports information office that said the events forced him to "re-examine" his life at Penn State. He later moved to Texas, according to court documents.
Judge Jones said there "are certain mechanisms within the law" that might allow Sandt to attempt to recover the damages he is entitled to.
"[Sandt] won a judgement against a defendant that he can't locate and who left no forwarding address," Jones said. "He needs to find him first before he can collect."
Sandt did not return phone calls placed to his home or his office in the music department at Orefield Middle School in Allentown. Luke could not be reached for comment.
