Solicitor: Hipps investigation has reached standstill

Tuesday turned into a day of contradictions in the Tucker Hipps case.

Tenth Circuit Solicitor Chrissy Adams said the case has reached a standstill after every lead has been exhausted.

But the Oconee County Sheriff's Office said that's not true.

It remains an active death investigation; investigators even received a new tip Tuesday, said Sheriff's Office Spokesman Jimmy Watt.

This comes as lawsuits filed by Hipps' parents paint a picture of an alleged confrontation and cover-up by fraternity members, a picture far more detailed than the information law enforcement has released to the public.

The family filed two civil lawsuits Monday in Pickens County, one for wrongful death and another for personal injury. Each asks for in excess of $25 million in damages.

Differing scenarios

The lawsuits describe in detail an alleged confrontation between Thomas King, a brother in the Clemson chapter of the Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity, and Hipps, after Hipps failed to bring breakfast for the group before a run that started under the cloak of darkness on Sept. 22.

The group ran across the State 93 bridge. Hipps died when he went over the railing into the waters of Lake Hartwell. His body was recovered that afternoon.

The suits say King shined a cell phone flashlight into the water after Hipps went over the railing and that fraternity members lied to Hipps' girlfriend while he was missing and deleted phone calls and group messages as the investigation ramped up.

But Adams said all students on the pre-dawn run claim they have no knowledge of how Hipps could have fallen over the rail of the bridge.

Neither the Sheriff's Office nor Adams would release any new details of its investigation Tuesday.

Watt wouldn't say whether the information in the lawsuit jibes with what the law enforcement investigation has found.

He said investigators executed search warrants in the case but those documents won't be released while the case remains under investigation.

"We've released everything we're going to release with regards to the investigation," Watt said. "The bottom line is we have a right to preserve the integrity of our investigation."

Watt said the Sheriff's Office received one tip through Crimestoppers on Tuesday — the only tip that has come in since an anonymous donor put up $20,000 to add to a $2,000 reward that had been offered for information leading to solving the case.

A gofundme.com fund raising effort started by friends of the family had raised more than $7,300 toward a $10,000 goal Tuesday to add to the reward.

This story was originally published March 31, 2015 at 8:00 AM with the headline "Solicitor: Hipps investigation has reached standstill."