Preview
1 Law Offices of
MATHENY SEARS LINKERT & JAIME LLP
2 MATTHEW C. JAIME (SBN 140340)
ROBERT W. SWEETIN (SBN 297130)
3 3638 American River Drive
Sacramento, California 95864
4 Telephone: (916) 978-3434
Facsimile: (916) 978-3430
5 m jaime@mathenysears.com
rsweetin@mathenysears.com
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Attorneys for Defendant, CHRISTOPHER
7 GUEVARA
8 SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA
9 COUNTY OF SANTA CRUZ
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16 THETA CHI FRATERNITY, INC., a New Date: May 20, 2022
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~ 17 member of and t/a the Theta Iota Chapter,
Dept: ·10
University of California, Santa Cruz, as a
18 member of the fraternal order known as
Theta Chi Fraternity, and as an alter-ego Complaint filed 10/31/19
19 and successor entity of the Theta Iota Trial date 6/20/22
Chapter of Theta Chi Fraternity; THETA
20 IOTA CHAPTER OF THETA CHI
FRATERNITY, individually, and as an and
21 agent and alter-ego of Theta Chi Fraternity,
Inc. CHRISTOPHER GUEVARA,
22 individually, and as an agent/member of
Theta Chi Fraternity, Inc. and Theta Iota
23 Chapter of Theta Chi Fraternity; BRAD
VISACKI, individually, and/or as
24 an agent/member of Theta Chi Fraternity,
Inc. and Theta Iota Chapter of Theta Chi
25 Fraternity; JORDAN KEIICHI
TAKAYAMA, individually, and as an
26 agent/member of Theta Chi Fraternity, Inc.
and Theta Iota Chapter of Theta Chi
27 Fraternity; ZACHARY NASH DA VIS,
individually, and as an agent/member of
28 Theta Chi Fraternit , Inc. and Theta Iota
1
DECLARATION OF MATTHEW C. JAIME IN SUPPORT OF CHRISTOPHER GUEVARA'S MOTION FOR
SUMMARY JUDGMENT, OR, IN THE ALTERNATIVE, SUMMARY ADJUDICATION
1 Chapter of Theta Chi Fraternity;
NAJPREET SINGH KAHLON,
2 individually, and as an agent/member of
Theta Chi Fraternity Inc. and Theta Iota
3 Chapter of Theta Chi Fraternity; STEFAN
MATIAS LEON, individually, and as an
4 agent/member of Theta Chi Fraternity, Inc.
and Theta Iota Chapter of Theta Chi
5 Fraternity; MOISES FRANCISCO
TENORIO GARCIA, individually, and as
6 an agent/member of Theta Chi Fraternity,
Inc. and Theta Iota Chapter of Theta Chi
7 Fraternity; RAFAEL GARCIA,
individually, and as an agent/member of
8 Theta Chi Fraternity, Inc. and Theta Iota
Chapter of Theta Chi Fraternity;
9 EMMANUEL THOMAS, individually, and
a. as an agent/member of Theta Chi
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Cruz, CA 95060; and JOHN DOES 1
18 through 10, inclusive, individually, and as
agents/members of Theta Chi Fraternity,
19 Inc. and Theta Iota Chapter of Theta Chi
Fraternity;
20 Defendants.
21 I, Matthew C. Jaime, declare under penalty of perjury that the foregoing is true and correct:
22 1. I am a lawyer duly licensed to practice before all courts of the State of California.
23 I am a partner at Matheny, Sears, Linkert & Jaime, LLP, attorneys of record for Defendant
24 Christopher Guevara in this matter. This declaration is based upon my personal knowledge. If
25 called as a witness, I could and would testify competently to the facts stated herein.
26 2. Attached hereto as Exhibit 1 are true and correct excerpts from the Deposition of
27 Daphne Beletsis, taken in this matter on August 6, 2021.
28
2
DECLARATION OF MATTHEW C. JAIME IN SUPPORT OF CHRISTOPHER GUEVARA'S MOTION FOR
SUMMARY JUDGMENT, OR, IN THE ALTERNATIVE, SUMMARY ADJUDICATION
1 3. Attached hereto as Exhibit 2 are true and correct excerpts from the Deposition of
2 Leon Bums, taken in this matter on December 20, 2020.
3 4. Attached hereto as Exhibit 3 are true and correct excerpts of the Deposition of
4 Mathieu Turk, taken in this matter on February 18, 2021.
5 5. Attached hereto as Exhibit 4 are true and correct excerpts of the Deposition of John
6 Benson, taken in this matter on May 13, 2021.
7 6. Attached hereto as Exhibit 5 is a true and correct copy excerpts of the Deposition
8 of Miguel Saldivar, taken in this matter on May 13, 2021.
9 7. Attached hereto as Exhibit 6 is a true and correct copy excerpts of the Deposition
Q.
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DECLARATION OF MATTHEW C. JAIME IN SUPPORT OF CHRISTOPHER GUEVARA'S MOTION FOR
SUMMARY JUDGMENT, OR, IN THE ALTERNATIVE, SUMMARY ADJUDICATION
EXHIBIT 1
DAPHNE BELETSIS - 08/06/2021
SUPERIOR COURT OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA
FOR THE COUNTY OF SANTA CRUZ
DAPHNE BELETSIS, )
individually, and as )
Administrator of the ESTATE )
OF ALEXANDER BELETSIS, and )
YVONNE RAINEY, surviving )
parent of ALEXANDER BELETSIS,)
deceased, )
)
Plaintiffs, )
)
v. ) CASE NO. 19CV03287
) DEPT. NO. 10
THETA CHI FRATERNITY, INC., a)
New York corporation, )
individually, as a member of)
and t/a the Theta Iota )
Chapter, University of )
California, Santa Cruz, as a)
member of the fraternal order)
known as Theta Chi )
Fraternity, and as an )
alter-ego and successor )
entity of the Theta Iota )
Chapter of Theta Chi )
Fraternity; THETA IOTA )
CHAPTER OF THETA CHI )
----------------)
VIDEOCONFERENCE DEPOSITION OF
DAPHNE BELETSIS
SANTA ROSA, CALIFORNIA
FRIDAY, AUGUST 6, 2021
Reported By Kele R. Smith, NV CCR No. 672, CA CSR No.
13405
Job No. : 779401
1
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DAPHNE BELETSIS - 08/06/2021
08:55:06 1 during the school year or summer, I don't know exactly.
08:55:11 2 Q. And was that locally in Santa Rosa that he
08:55:16 3 worked?
08:55:16 4 A. Yes.
08:55:17 5 Q. Did he do any volunteer work in his high school
08:55:22 6 years?
08:55:22 7 A. Not that I recall.
08:55:25 8 Q. Did Alex provide you any financial, support?
08:55:47 9 A. No.
08:55:48 10 Q. Did he make any representations to you or
08:56:00 11 assurances to you that in the future he would be
08:56:03 12 providing you with financial support?
08:56:05 13 A. No.
08:56:05 14 Q. Did you ever hear Alex make any representations
08:56:09 15 to Yvonne that he would be providing her financial
08:56:15 16 support in the future?
08:56:16 17 A. No.
08:56:43 18 Q. What is Alex's date of birth?
08:56: 46 19 A. Pardon. Alex's date of birth?
08:56:51 20 Q. Correct?
08:56:52 21 A. May 9, 1998.
08:56:54 22 Q. After graduating high school, did he go directly
08:56:59 23 to UC Santa Cruz?
08:57:01 24 A. Yes.
08:57:01 25 Q. During his high school did he have any
19
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DAPHNE BELETSIS - 08/06/2021
09:01:06 1 if that was high school or later. There was an occasion
09:01:13 2 where I learned that he was at a party that he had not
09:01:18 3 told me he was going to and there was alcohol at that
09:01:22 4 party. Urn, and there was an incident where his friend
09:01:29 5 called me and asked me to come get them from a party
09:01:34 6 where there was alcohol.
09:01:43 7 BY MS. CHILDS:
09:01:43 8 Q. So would there be occasions where he would get a
09:01:47 9 ride home from some kind of social event that he was
09:01:51 10 attending and then the next day he would ask you to go
09:01:55 11 get his car. Is that correct?
09:01:57 12 MR. FIERBERG: Objection.
09:01:58 13 A. I believe that happened once or twice.
09:02:01 14 BY MS. CHILDS:
09:02:08 15 Q. Did he ever come home intoxicated?
09:02:11 16 MR. FIERBERG: Objection.
09:02:12 17 A. He was intoxicated on the occasion that the
09:02:21 18 friend called me and asked me to pick them up.
09:02:24 19 BY MS. CHILDS:
09:02:32 20 Q. Did you have any discussions with Alex while he
09:02:36 21 was still in high school regarding his alcohol
09:02:40 22 consumption?
09:02:48 23 A. Regarding alcohol consumption in general, yes.
09:02:52 24 Q. How about regarding his personal consumption of
09:02:56 25 alcohol on the vario1.1s occasions we just discussed?
22
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DAPHNE BELETSIS - 08/06/2021
09:03:00 1 A. Yes.
09:03:01 2 Q. Were you concerned about his alcohol consumptio,n
09:03:07 3 in high school?
09:03:08 4 MR. FIERBERG: Objection.
09:03:14 5 A. I was always concerned about drinking and
09:03:21 6 driving, so that was always a big topic of conversation.
09:03:26 7 It was important to me that he understand that alcohol
09:03:30 8 could be toxic -- you know, rise to toxic levels. I
09:03:37 9 think the night that I was asked to pick them up was
09:03:40 10 because it was a first exposure to hard alcohol, and so
09:03:44 11 I remember discussing, you know, quantities and there's
09:03:49 12 a difference between 16 ounces of beer and 16 ounces of
09:03:54 13 hard alcohol. You know, those kind of teenager
09:03:58 14 conversations, yes.
09:03:59 15 BY MS. CHILDS:
09:04:02 16 Q. Were you aware of any marijuana use during high
09:04:07 17 school?
09:04:07 18 A. Yes.
09:04:08 19 MR. FIERBERG: Objection.
09:04:13 20 BY MS. CHILDS:
09:04:18 21 Q. I 'm sorry. Did we get an answer?
09:04:20 22 A. I said yes.
09:04:22 23 Q. And was that something, to your knowledge, that
09:04:30 24 he did with any regularity while in high school?
09:04:35 25 A. Yes.
23
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DAPHNE BELETSIS - 08/06/2021
09:04:36 1 MR. FIERBERG: Objection.
09:04:37 2 MS. CHILDS:
09:04:37 3 Q. What was your understanding as to how often he
09:04:40 4 was using marijuana in high school?
09:04:42 5 MR. FIERBERG: I'm going to object to the whole
09:04:44 6 line of questioning. I'm going to put it on the record
09:04:48 7 so I don't have to interfere.
09:04:52 8 MS. CHILDS: Thank you.
09:04:52 9 A. I don't have an understanding about frequency.
09:04:56 10 BY MS. CHILDS:
09:04:59 11 Q. To your knowledge, during his high school years,
09:05:01 12 was he using Xanax at all?
09:05:07 13 MR. FIERBERG: Objection.
0 9: 0 5 ·: 0 8 14 A. Not to my knowledge.
09:05:10 15 BY MS. CHILDS:
09:05:13 16 Q. Were you aware of him using any other drugs? I
09:05:18 17 don't mean if he got prescription drugs for a cold. Any
09:05:23 18 other drugs in his high school years?
09:05:25 19 MR. FIERBERG: Objection.
09:05:26 20 A. No.
09:05:27 21 BY MS. CHILDS:
09:05:29 22 Q. At any time in his high school years, did he
09:05:34 23 struggle with any mental health issues? By that I mean
09:05:40 24 depression, anxiety.
09:05:42 25 A. Um, I always felt that Alex had
24
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EXHIBIT2
Leon Burns
December 21, 2020
SUPERIOR COURT OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA
COUNTY OF SANTA CRUZ
DAPHNE BELETSIS, individually,
and as Administrator of the
ESTATE OF ALEXANDER BELETSIS,
and YVONNE RAINEY, surviving
parent of ALEXANDER BELETSIS,
deceased,
Plaintiffs,
vs. CASE NO. 19CV03287
THETA CHI FRATERNITY, INC., a
New York corporation,
individually, as a member of and
t/a the Theta Iota Chapter,
University of California, Santa
Cruz, as a member of the
fraternal order known as Theta
Chi Fraternity, and as an
alter-ego and successor entity
of the Theta Iota Chapter of
Theta Chi Fraternity, et al.,
Defendants.
AND RELATED CROSS-ACTIONS
VIDEOTAPED DEPOSITION OF LEON BURNS
APPEARING REMOTELY FROM SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA
Monday, December 21, 2020
10:08 a.m. - 6:03 p.m.
REPORTED BY:
Ingrid Skorobohaty
CSR No. 11669
APPEARING REMOTELY FROM SACRAMENTO COUNTY, CA
U.S. Legal Support I www.uslegalsupport.com
Leon Burns
December 21, 2020
1 school week to study together, hang out together, go
2 out to eat together?
3 A. We would go eat. We met each other at the
4 library many times to study, or we would go to his
5 apartment and study or play video games.
6 Q. And when you say "his apartment," are you
7 talking about Turk's?
8 A. Sorry. Alex Beletis' 'cause he was on --
9 Q. Oh.
10 A. campus.
11 Q. So on occasion you would go to Alex
12 Beletis's apartment on campus and play video games?
13 A. Yes.
14 Q. When you would go to Alex's apartment to
15 play video games, would there be alcohol to consume?
16 MR. FIERBERG: Objection again to this
17 whole line.
18 THE WITNESS: On some occasions, yes.
19 BY MS. AZEVEDO:
20 Q. Do you know if Alex had alcohol in his
21 room?
22 A. On some occasion_s it was in his apartment,
23 not his room.
24 Q. While playing video games with Alex while
25 the two of you were pledges, would Alex consume
u.s.· Legal Support I www.uslegalsupport.com 44
Leon Burns
December 21, 2020
1 alcohol?
2 A. Yes.
3 Q. What type of alcohol was it? Was it beer,
4 or something other?
5 A. Many different forms: Beer, tequila,
6 like, lots of different types of alcohol.
7 Q. Would you typically go to Alex's apartment
8 to play video games during the day, or during the
9 evenings, or is there not really a typical?
10 A. Wasn't a typical. If I had to say, it
11 was -- I'd see him mostly at night.
12 Q. Did you ever observe Alex take any drugs
13 while in Alex's apartment while you were a pledge
14 when you two were playing video games or hanging out
15 together?
16 MR. FIERBERG: Same objection.
17 THE WITNESS: Yes.
18 BY MS . AZEVEDO:
19 Q. What type of drugs would you see Alex
20 take?
21 A. Weed and cocaine.
22 Q. Did you actually observe Alex smoke --
23 snort cocaine?
24 A. Yes.
25 Q. Did you ever ask Alex where he got the
U.S. Legal Support I www.uslegalsupport.com 45
Leon Burns
December 21, 2020
1 cocaine?
2 A. Yes.
3 Q. Did he tell you?
4 A. Yes.
5 Q. And this is while you were a pledge?
6 A. Correct.
7 Q. Did he tell you -- did he, being Alex,
8 tell you that he purchased cocaine from someone
9 affiliated with Theta Chi?
10 A. No.
11 Q. When Alex would snort cocaine, did it
12 alter his personality, in your opinion?
13 MR. FIERBERG: Objection.
14 THE WITNESS: At some points, yes.
15 BY MS. AZEVEDO:
16 Q. "Some points" meaning depending upon how
17 much he snorted, or on some times and some times
18 not?
19 A. Sometimes; sometimes not. It also
20 depended on, like, outside factors, people in the
21 room, what was going on, events like that.
22 Q. When Alex would snort cocaine, would you
23 observe that he would become sad or happy or would
24 his emotions kind of vary from what you thought was
25 the typical Alex?
U.S. Legal Support I www.uslegalsupport.com 46
Leon Burns
December 21, 2020
1 MR. FIERBERG: Same objection.
2 THE WITNESS: Yes.
3 BY MS. AZEVEDO:
4 Q. Do you have an incident in mind?
5 A. Another night like the one I previously
6 stated, gotten a bunch of alcohol. He had weed and
7 cocaine and took so much to the point that he was
8 biting his lip profusely.
9 Q. I'm sorry. Was the first word that he was
10 doing weed and cocaine?
11 A. Yes. He had weed and cocaine.
12 Q. So he was smoking marijuana and snorting
13 cocaine?
14 A. Yes.
15 Q. And he started biting his lip, you said,
16 profusely?
17 A. To the point where it was almost bleeding.
18 Q. Was anyone else present on this incident?
19 A. John Benson was with us that night.
20 Q. And again, this is just the three of you
21 hanging out in Alex's apartment?
22 MS. LANDESS: Sorry to interrupt, Julie.
23 I didn't hear his answer about who else was with
24 him.
25 THE WITNESS: Sorry. John Benson.
U.S. Legal Support I www.uslegalsupport.com 53
Leon Burns
December 21, 2020
1 And then did you end up going to the
2 crossing ceremony?
3 A. Yes. I rode my long board from the
4 Starbucks to Market house.
5 Q. Stay that again.
6 A. I rode my long board from my Starbucks,
7 from work, to the house on Market Street.
8 Q. What time did you arrive at the house on
9 Market Street?
10 A. I don't remember exactly. Probably within
11 30 minutes.
12 Q. So probably 5:30-ish?
13 A. Yes.
14 Q. And the house on Market Street was where
15 the crossing ceremony was to take place, correct?
16 A. Yes.
17 Q. Did you have an understanding that my
18 client Jordan Takayama was one of the persons who
19 lived at Market Street?
20 A. Yes.
21 Q. Did you have an understanding as to what,
22 if any, role Jordan Takayama played in the crossing
23 ceremony that was done that evening?
24 A. I don't remember exactly. From what I can
25 remember, he was just supposed to read from a
U.S. Legal Support I www.uslegalsupport.com 61
Leon Burns
December 21, 2020
1 crossing ceremony?
2 A. Yes.
3 Q. Do you know what time Alex got there?
4 A. Not exactly. If I had to estimate, around
5 6:00 o'clock.
6 Q. Did Alex arrive before the ceremony began?
7 A. Yes.
8 Q. Did he arrive alone, or with someone?
9 A. Alone.
10 Q. Did you speak with Alex when he arrived?
11 A. Yes.
12 Q. Did Alex seem out of the ordinary in any
13 way to you at that time?
14 A. Not at that time.
15 Q. Did Alex say whether he had had any
16 alcohol to drink at the time of his arrival?
17 MR. FIERBERG: O~jection.
18 THE WITNESS: At the time of his arrival,
19 no.
20 BY MS. AZEVEDO:
21 Q. While at the crossing ceremony, did you
22 observe Alex drink alcohol?
23 A. Yes.
24 Q. Did Alex bring alcohol to the crossing
25 ceremony?
U.S. Legal Support I www.uslegalsupport.com 65
Leon Burns
December 21, 2020
1 Jagermeister with him in the car?
2 A. No.
3 Q. Do you know why Alex took the bottle of
4 Jagermeister with him in the car?
5 A. No.
6 Q. When Alex had the bottle of Jagermeister
7 and you're all walking to the car, was it in Alex's,
8 like, coat pocket, or was he just holding it openly?
9 A. I don't remember exactly. I believe him
10 to be holding it openly, though.
11 Q. Can do you know the -- the size of the
12 bottle of Jagermeister, the amount of fluid the
13 bottle held?
14 A. No, I don't know that.
15 Q. It wasn't a -- it wasn't a small shot
16 bottle.
17 A. It was not a small shot bottle.
18 Q. Once in the car, did Alex continue
19 drinking the Jagermeister?
20 A. Yes.
21 Q. Can you tell me how many sips he had?
22 A. Not exactly. Multiple.
23 Q. Was anyone else drinking the Jagermeister
24 in the car?
25 A. Yes.
U.S. Legal Support I www.uslegalsupport.com 78
Leon Burns
December 21, 2020
1 Q. Okay.
2 So you walk into the house. Do John and
3 Miguel walk to the bar with you to get a drink?
4 A. I don't remember.
5 Q. Did they -- do you remember if they went
6 upstairs with Alex?
7 A. No, I don't.
8 Q. You don't remember?
9 A. I don't remember. Sorry.
10 Q. Okay.
11 So you grab the beers, and Alex goes
12 upstairs, and then what do you do?
13 A. I went upstairs to meet up with Alex.
14 Q. You went upstairs?
15 A. Yes.
16 Q. Okay.
17 And what room did you go into when you got
18 upstairs?
19 A. Derek King's room.
20 Q. And why did you go into Derek King's
21 bedroom?
22 A. 'Cause the door was open and I saw Alex
23 there.
24 Q. And what was happening when you went into
25 Derek King's room?
U.S. Legal Support I www.uslegalsupport.com 84
Leon Burns
December 21, 2020
1 A. They were hanging out, drinking.
2 There was a bong on the table, but I can't
3 remember if they were smoking out of it or not.
4 MR. FIERBERG: I couldn't understand it.
5 THE WITNESS: They -- they were drinking,
6 like, talking, and there was a bong on the table,
7 but I can't remember if they were smoking out of it
8 at that point.
9 BY MS. AZEVEDO:
10 Q. Who was in the room other than Alex?
11 A. Derek and a couple girls, and then I can't
12 remember, but about two more people.
13 Q. Was Alex sitting down or standing up when
14 you walked in?
15 A. Sitting down.
16 Q. Did Alex have a drink when you walked in?
17 A. No.
18 Q. Did you observe a bottle of alcohol in
19 Derek King's bedroom?
20 A. Not that I can remember.
21 Q
Preview
1 Law Offices of MATHENY SEARS LINKERT & JAIME LLP 2 MATTHEW C. JAIME (SBN 140340) ROBERT W. SWEETIN (SBN 297130) 3 3638 American River Drive Sacramento, California 95864 4 Telephone: (916) 978-3434 Facsimile: (916) 978-3430 5 m jaime@mathenysears.com rsweetin@mathenysears.com 6 Attorneys for Defendant, CHRISTOPHER 7 GUEVARA 8 SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA 9 COUNTY OF SANTA CRUZ a. ..J ..J w 10 - wco :!JE <( -.;t ~ 11 DAPHNE BELETSIS, individually, and as Case No. 19CV03287 -, 2::~ ca 0 c:: <( - Administrator of the Estate of u.. o t--c::Z O:::wC:: 12 ALEXANDER BELETSIS, and YVONNE DECLARATION OF MATTHEW C. Cl) ~ W>O ~er:~ RAINEY, surviving parent of JAIME IN SUPPORT OF CHRISTOPHER - Zz-;i 13 ALEXANDER BELETSIS, deceased, GUEVARA'S MOTION FOR SUMMARY u.. ..Ju u..- ~o z C"')<( w (/) 16 THETA CHI FRATERNITY, INC., a New Date: May 20, 2022 ....J:<( York corporation, individually, as a Time: 8:30 a.m. ~ 17 member of and t/a the Theta Iota Chapter, Dept: ·10 University of California, Santa Cruz, as a 18 member of the fraternal order known as Theta Chi Fraternity, and as an alter-ego Complaint filed 10/31/19 19 and successor entity of the Theta Iota Trial date 6/20/22 Chapter of Theta Chi Fraternity; THETA 20 IOTA CHAPTER OF THETA CHI FRATERNITY, individually, and as an and 21 agent and alter-ego of Theta Chi Fraternity, Inc. CHRISTOPHER GUEVARA, 22 individually, and as an agent/member of Theta Chi Fraternity, Inc. and Theta Iota 23 Chapter of Theta Chi Fraternity; BRAD VISACKI, individually, and/or as 24 an agent/member of Theta Chi Fraternity, Inc. and Theta Iota Chapter of Theta Chi 25 Fraternity; JORDAN KEIICHI TAKAYAMA, individually, and as an 26 agent/member of Theta Chi Fraternity, Inc. and Theta Iota Chapter of Theta Chi 27 Fraternity; ZACHARY NASH DA VIS, individually, and as an agent/member of 28 Theta Chi Fraternit , Inc. and Theta Iota 1 DECLARATION OF MATTHEW C. JAIME IN SUPPORT OF CHRISTOPHER GUEVARA'S MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT, OR, IN THE ALTERNATIVE, SUMMARY ADJUDICATION 1 Chapter of Theta Chi Fraternity; NAJPREET SINGH KAHLON, 2 individually, and as an agent/member of Theta Chi Fraternity Inc. and Theta Iota 3 Chapter of Theta Chi Fraternity; STEFAN MATIAS LEON, individually, and as an 4 agent/member of Theta Chi Fraternity, Inc. and Theta Iota Chapter of Theta Chi 5 Fraternity; MOISES FRANCISCO TENORIO GARCIA, individually, and as 6 an agent/member of Theta Chi Fraternity, Inc. and Theta Iota Chapter of Theta Chi 7 Fraternity; RAFAEL GARCIA, individually, and as an agent/member of 8 Theta Chi Fraternity, Inc. and Theta Iota Chapter of Theta Chi Fraternity; 9 EMMANUEL THOMAS, individually, and a. as an agent/member of Theta Chi ..J ..J w 10 Fraternity, Inc. and Theta Iota Chapter of :e ,q- Theta Chi Fraternity; BOBBY KARKI, <( UJ~ 11 individually, and as an agent/member of --, ~ :£ °"a:<( 0- Theta Chi Fraternity, Inc. and Theta Iota LL 0 ~UJO'.: 12 f- Cl'.: Z Chapter of Theta Chi Fraternity; DEREK en w >0 KING, individually, and as an ~ ~ 5::!:!:: - Zz;.i LL-<((.) 13 agent/member of Theta Chi Fraternity, Inc. LL..J (.) and Theta Iota Chapter of Theta Chi o tn-6 ~ ~ ffif- 14 Fraternity; JOHN DYLAN LEITCH, 5 <( ~z w <(~ individually, and as an agent/member of (/) ~(2 15 Theta Chi Fraternity, Inc. and Theta Iota >- z <.0 (.) w <( C") en Chapter of Theta Chi Fraternity; QUINN :x: 16 MCLAUGHLIN, individually and as t- <( Trustee of the QUINN M. MCLAUGHLIN :e 17 LIVING TRUST, 117 Pasture Rd., Santa Cruz, CA 95060; and JOHN DOES 1 18 through 10, inclusive, individually, and as agents/members of Theta Chi Fraternity, 19 Inc. and Theta Iota Chapter of Theta Chi Fraternity; 20 Defendants. 21 I, Matthew C. Jaime, declare under penalty of perjury that the foregoing is true and correct: 22 1. I am a lawyer duly licensed to practice before all courts of the State of California. 23 I am a partner at Matheny, Sears, Linkert & Jaime, LLP, attorneys of record for Defendant 24 Christopher Guevara in this matter. This declaration is based upon my personal knowledge. If 25 called as a witness, I could and would testify competently to the facts stated herein. 26 2. Attached hereto as Exhibit 1 are true and correct excerpts from the Deposition of 27 Daphne Beletsis, taken in this matter on August 6, 2021. 28 2 DECLARATION OF MATTHEW C. JAIME IN SUPPORT OF CHRISTOPHER GUEVARA'S MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT, OR, IN THE ALTERNATIVE, SUMMARY ADJUDICATION 1 3. Attached hereto as Exhibit 2 are true and correct excerpts from the Deposition of 2 Leon Bums, taken in this matter on December 20, 2020. 3 4. Attached hereto as Exhibit 3 are true and correct excerpts of the Deposition of 4 Mathieu Turk, taken in this matter on February 18, 2021. 5 5. Attached hereto as Exhibit 4 are true and correct excerpts of the Deposition of John 6 Benson, taken in this matter on May 13, 2021. 7 6. Attached hereto as Exhibit 5 is a true and correct copy excerpts of the Deposition 8 of Miguel Saldivar, taken in this matter on May 13, 2021. 9 7. Attached hereto as Exhibit 6 is a true and correct copy excerpts of the Deposition Q. -I -I of Sophia Beletsis, taken in this matter on January 11, 2021. w 10 ~ ' -, 2: :£ 11 I declare under penalty of perjury under the laws of the State of California that the foregoing oa~~ is true and correct. U..t-o:::Z o 0::: wO::: 12 (f)W>O ~~a::!= Executed this ~ day of February, 2022, at Sacramento, California. - u..Zz~ - c.ou z w J: t- <( ("')<( (/) 15 16 (/IC. JAIME, ESQ. :e 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 3 DECLARATION OF MATTHEW C. JAIME IN SUPPORT OF CHRISTOPHER GUEVARA'S MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT, OR, IN THE ALTERNATIVE, SUMMARY ADJUDICATION EXHIBIT 1 DAPHNE BELETSIS - 08/06/2021 SUPERIOR COURT OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA FOR THE COUNTY OF SANTA CRUZ DAPHNE BELETSIS, ) individually, and as ) Administrator of the ESTATE ) OF ALEXANDER BELETSIS, and ) YVONNE RAINEY, surviving ) parent of ALEXANDER BELETSIS,) deceased, ) ) Plaintiffs, ) ) v. ) CASE NO. 19CV03287 ) DEPT. NO. 10 THETA CHI FRATERNITY, INC., a) New York corporation, ) individually, as a member of) and t/a the Theta Iota ) Chapter, University of ) California, Santa Cruz, as a) member of the fraternal order) known as Theta Chi ) Fraternity, and as an ) alter-ego and successor ) entity of the Theta Iota ) Chapter of Theta Chi ) Fraternity; THETA IOTA ) CHAPTER OF THETA CHI ) ----------------) VIDEOCONFERENCE DEPOSITION OF DAPHNE BELETSIS SANTA ROSA, CALIFORNIA FRIDAY, AUGUST 6, 2021 Reported By Kele R. Smith, NV CCR No. 672, CA CSR No. 13405 Job No. : 779401 1 Litigation Services I 800-330-1112 www.litigationservices.com DAPHNE BELETSIS - 08/06/2021 08:55:06 1 during the school year or summer, I don't know exactly. 08:55:11 2 Q. And was that locally in Santa Rosa that he 08:55:16 3 worked? 08:55:16 4 A. Yes. 08:55:17 5 Q. Did he do any volunteer work in his high school 08:55:22 6 years? 08:55:22 7 A. Not that I recall. 08:55:25 8 Q. Did Alex provide you any financial, support? 08:55:47 9 A. No. 08:55:48 10 Q. Did he make any representations to you or 08:56:00 11 assurances to you that in the future he would be 08:56:03 12 providing you with financial support? 08:56:05 13 A. No. 08:56:05 14 Q. Did you ever hear Alex make any representations 08:56:09 15 to Yvonne that he would be providing her financial 08:56:15 16 support in the future? 08:56:16 17 A. No. 08:56:43 18 Q. What is Alex's date of birth? 08:56: 46 19 A. Pardon. Alex's date of birth? 08:56:51 20 Q. Correct? 08:56:52 21 A. May 9, 1998. 08:56:54 22 Q. After graduating high school, did he go directly 08:56:59 23 to UC Santa Cruz? 08:57:01 24 A. Yes. 08:57:01 25 Q. During his high school did he have any 19 Litigation Services I 800-330-1112 www.litigationservices.com DAPHNE BELETSIS - 08/06/2021 09:01:06 1 if that was high school or later. There was an occasion 09:01:13 2 where I learned that he was at a party that he had not 09:01:18 3 told me he was going to and there was alcohol at that 09:01:22 4 party. Urn, and there was an incident where his friend 09:01:29 5 called me and asked me to come get them from a party 09:01:34 6 where there was alcohol. 09:01:43 7 BY MS. CHILDS: 09:01:43 8 Q. So would there be occasions where he would get a 09:01:47 9 ride home from some kind of social event that he was 09:01:51 10 attending and then the next day he would ask you to go 09:01:55 11 get his car. Is that correct? 09:01:57 12 MR. FIERBERG: Objection. 09:01:58 13 A. I believe that happened once or twice. 09:02:01 14 BY MS. CHILDS: 09:02:08 15 Q. Did he ever come home intoxicated? 09:02:11 16 MR. FIERBERG: Objection. 09:02:12 17 A. He was intoxicated on the occasion that the 09:02:21 18 friend called me and asked me to pick them up. 09:02:24 19 BY MS. CHILDS: 09:02:32 20 Q. Did you have any discussions with Alex while he 09:02:36 21 was still in high school regarding his alcohol 09:02:40 22 consumption? 09:02:48 23 A. Regarding alcohol consumption in general, yes. 09:02:52 24 Q. How about regarding his personal consumption of 09:02:56 25 alcohol on the vario1.1s occasions we just discussed? 22 Litigation Services I 800-330-1112 www.litigationservices.com DAPHNE BELETSIS - 08/06/2021 09:03:00 1 A. Yes. 09:03:01 2 Q. Were you concerned about his alcohol consumptio,n 09:03:07 3 in high school? 09:03:08 4 MR. FIERBERG: Objection. 09:03:14 5 A. I was always concerned about drinking and 09:03:21 6 driving, so that was always a big topic of conversation. 09:03:26 7 It was important to me that he understand that alcohol 09:03:30 8 could be toxic -- you know, rise to toxic levels. I 09:03:37 9 think the night that I was asked to pick them up was 09:03:40 10 because it was a first exposure to hard alcohol, and so 09:03:44 11 I remember discussing, you know, quantities and there's 09:03:49 12 a difference between 16 ounces of beer and 16 ounces of 09:03:54 13 hard alcohol. You know, those kind of teenager 09:03:58 14 conversations, yes. 09:03:59 15 BY MS. CHILDS: 09:04:02 16 Q. Were you aware of any marijuana use during high 09:04:07 17 school? 09:04:07 18 A. Yes. 09:04:08 19 MR. FIERBERG: Objection. 09:04:13 20 BY MS. CHILDS: 09:04:18 21 Q. I 'm sorry. Did we get an answer? 09:04:20 22 A. I said yes. 09:04:22 23 Q. And was that something, to your knowledge, that 09:04:30 24 he did with any regularity while in high school? 09:04:35 25 A. Yes. 23 Litigation Services I 800-330-1112 www.litigationservices.com DAPHNE BELETSIS - 08/06/2021 09:04:36 1 MR. FIERBERG: Objection. 09:04:37 2 MS. CHILDS: 09:04:37 3 Q. What was your understanding as to how often he 09:04:40 4 was using marijuana in high school? 09:04:42 5 MR. FIERBERG: I'm going to object to the whole 09:04:44 6 line of questioning. I'm going to put it on the record 09:04:48 7 so I don't have to interfere. 09:04:52 8 MS. CHILDS: Thank you. 09:04:52 9 A. I don't have an understanding about frequency. 09:04:56 10 BY MS. CHILDS: 09:04:59 11 Q. To your knowledge, during his high school years, 09:05:01 12 was he using Xanax at all? 09:05:07 13 MR. FIERBERG: Objection. 0 9: 0 5 ·: 0 8 14 A. Not to my knowledge. 09:05:10 15 BY MS. CHILDS: 09:05:13 16 Q. Were you aware of him using any other drugs? I 09:05:18 17 don't mean if he got prescription drugs for a cold. Any 09:05:23 18 other drugs in his high school years? 09:05:25 19 MR. FIERBERG: Objection. 09:05:26 20 A. No. 09:05:27 21 BY MS. CHILDS: 09:05:29 22 Q. At any time in his high school years, did he 09:05:34 23 struggle with any mental health issues? By that I mean 09:05:40 24 depression, anxiety. 09:05:42 25 A. Um, I always felt that Alex had 24 Litigation Services I 800-330;.1112 www .litigationservices.com EXHIBIT2 Leon Burns December 21, 2020 SUPERIOR COURT OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA COUNTY OF SANTA CRUZ DAPHNE BELETSIS, individually, and as Administrator of the ESTATE OF ALEXANDER BELETSIS, and YVONNE RAINEY, surviving parent of ALEXANDER BELETSIS, deceased, Plaintiffs, vs. CASE NO. 19CV03287 THETA CHI FRATERNITY, INC., a New York corporation, individually, as a member of and t/a the Theta Iota Chapter, University of California, Santa Cruz, as a member of the fraternal order known as Theta Chi Fraternity, and as an alter-ego and successor entity of the Theta Iota Chapter of Theta Chi Fraternity, et al., Defendants. AND RELATED CROSS-ACTIONS VIDEOTAPED DEPOSITION OF LEON BURNS APPEARING REMOTELY FROM SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA Monday, December 21, 2020 10:08 a.m. - 6:03 p.m. REPORTED BY: Ingrid Skorobohaty CSR No. 11669 APPEARING REMOTELY FROM SACRAMENTO COUNTY, CA U.S. Legal Support I www.uslegalsupport.com Leon Burns December 21, 2020 1 school week to study together, hang out together, go 2 out to eat together? 3 A. We would go eat. We met each other at the 4 library many times to study, or we would go to his 5 apartment and study or play video games. 6 Q. And when you say "his apartment," are you 7 talking about Turk's? 8 A. Sorry. Alex Beletis' 'cause he was on -- 9 Q. Oh. 10 A. campus. 11 Q. So on occasion you would go to Alex 12 Beletis's apartment on campus and play video games? 13 A. Yes. 14 Q. When you would go to Alex's apartment to 15 play video games, would there be alcohol to consume? 16 MR. FIERBERG: Objection again to this 17 whole line. 18 THE WITNESS: On some occasions, yes. 19 BY MS. AZEVEDO: 20 Q. Do you know if Alex had alcohol in his 21 room? 22 A. On some occasion_s it was in his apartment, 23 not his room. 24 Q. While playing video games with Alex while 25 the two of you were pledges, would Alex consume u.s.· Legal Support I www.uslegalsupport.com 44 Leon Burns December 21, 2020 1 alcohol? 2 A. Yes. 3 Q. What type of alcohol was it? Was it beer, 4 or something other? 5 A. Many different forms: Beer, tequila, 6 like, lots of different types of alcohol. 7 Q. Would you typically go to Alex's apartment 8 to play video games during the day, or during the 9 evenings, or is there not really a typical? 10 A. Wasn't a typical. If I had to say, it 11 was -- I'd see him mostly at night. 12 Q. Did you ever observe Alex take any drugs 13 while in Alex's apartment while you were a pledge 14 when you two were playing video games or hanging out 15 together? 16 MR. FIERBERG: Same objection. 17 THE WITNESS: Yes. 18 BY MS . AZEVEDO: 19 Q. What type of drugs would you see Alex 20 take? 21 A. Weed and cocaine. 22 Q. Did you actually observe Alex smoke -- 23 snort cocaine? 24 A. Yes. 25 Q. Did you ever ask Alex where he got the U.S. Legal Support I www.uslegalsupport.com 45 Leon Burns December 21, 2020 1 cocaine? 2 A. Yes. 3 Q. Did he tell you? 4 A. Yes. 5 Q. And this is while you were a pledge? 6 A. Correct. 7 Q. Did he tell you -- did he, being Alex, 8 tell you that he purchased cocaine from someone 9 affiliated with Theta Chi? 10 A. No. 11 Q. When Alex would snort cocaine, did it 12 alter his personality, in your opinion? 13 MR. FIERBERG: Objection. 14 THE WITNESS: At some points, yes. 15 BY MS. AZEVEDO: 16 Q. "Some points" meaning depending upon how 17 much he snorted, or on some times and some times 18 not? 19 A. Sometimes; sometimes not. It also 20 depended on, like, outside factors, people in the 21 room, what was going on, events like that. 22 Q. When Alex would snort cocaine, would you 23 observe that he would become sad or happy or would 24 his emotions kind of vary from what you thought was 25 the typical Alex? U.S. Legal Support I www.uslegalsupport.com 46 Leon Burns December 21, 2020 1 MR. FIERBERG: Same objection. 2 THE WITNESS: Yes. 3 BY MS. AZEVEDO: 4 Q. Do you have an incident in mind? 5 A. Another night like the one I previously 6 stated, gotten a bunch of alcohol. He had weed and 7 cocaine and took so much to the point that he was 8 biting his lip profusely. 9 Q. I'm sorry. Was the first word that he was 10 doing weed and cocaine? 11 A. Yes. He had weed and cocaine. 12 Q. So he was smoking marijuana and snorting 13 cocaine? 14 A. Yes. 15 Q. And he started biting his lip, you said, 16 profusely? 17 A. To the point where it was almost bleeding. 18 Q. Was anyone else present on this incident? 19 A. John Benson was with us that night. 20 Q. And again, this is just the three of you 21 hanging out in Alex's apartment? 22 MS. LANDESS: Sorry to interrupt, Julie. 23 I didn't hear his answer about who else was with 24 him. 25 THE WITNESS: Sorry. John Benson. U.S. Legal Support I www.uslegalsupport.com 53 Leon Burns December 21, 2020 1 And then did you end up going to the 2 crossing ceremony? 3 A. Yes. I rode my long board from the 4 Starbucks to Market house. 5 Q. Stay that again. 6 A. I rode my long board from my Starbucks, 7 from work, to the house on Market Street. 8 Q. What time did you arrive at the house on 9 Market Street? 10 A. I don't remember exactly. Probably within 11 30 minutes. 12 Q. So probably 5:30-ish? 13 A. Yes. 14 Q. And the house on Market Street was where 15 the crossing ceremony was to take place, correct? 16 A. Yes. 17 Q. Did you have an understanding that my 18 client Jordan Takayama was one of the persons who 19 lived at Market Street? 20 A. Yes. 21 Q. Did you have an understanding as to what, 22 if any, role Jordan Takayama played in the crossing 23 ceremony that was done that evening? 24 A. I don't remember exactly. From what I can 25 remember, he was just supposed to read from a U.S. Legal Support I www.uslegalsupport.com 61 Leon Burns December 21, 2020 1 crossing ceremony? 2 A. Yes. 3 Q. Do you know what time Alex got there? 4 A. Not exactly. If I had to estimate, around 5 6:00 o'clock. 6 Q. Did Alex arrive before the ceremony began? 7 A. Yes. 8 Q. Did he arrive alone, or with someone? 9 A. Alone. 10 Q. Did you speak with Alex when he arrived? 11 A. Yes. 12 Q. Did Alex seem out of the ordinary in any 13 way to you at that time? 14 A. Not at that time. 15 Q. Did Alex say whether he had had any 16 alcohol to drink at the time of his arrival? 17 MR. FIERBERG: O~jection. 18 THE WITNESS: At the time of his arrival, 19 no. 20 BY MS. AZEVEDO: 21 Q. While at the crossing ceremony, did you 22 observe Alex drink alcohol? 23 A. Yes. 24 Q. Did Alex bring alcohol to the crossing 25 ceremony? U.S. Legal Support I www.uslegalsupport.com 65 Leon Burns December 21, 2020 1 Jagermeister with him in the car? 2 A. No. 3 Q. Do you know why Alex took the bottle of 4 Jagermeister with him in the car? 5 A. No. 6 Q. When Alex had the bottle of Jagermeister 7 and you're all walking to the car, was it in Alex's, 8 like, coat pocket, or was he just holding it openly? 9 A. I don't remember exactly. I believe him 10 to be holding it openly, though. 11 Q. Can do you know the -- the size of the 12 bottle of Jagermeister, the amount of fluid the 13 bottle held? 14 A. No, I don't know that. 15 Q. It wasn't a -- it wasn't a small shot 16 bottle. 17 A. It was not a small shot bottle. 18 Q. Once in the car, did Alex continue 19 drinking the Jagermeister? 20 A. Yes. 21 Q. Can you tell me how many sips he had? 22 A. Not exactly. Multiple. 23 Q. Was anyone else drinking the Jagermeister 24 in the car? 25 A. Yes. U.S. Legal Support I www.uslegalsupport.com 78 Leon Burns December 21, 2020 1 Q. Okay. 2 So you walk into the house. Do John and 3 Miguel walk to the bar with you to get a drink? 4 A. I don't remember. 5 Q. Did they -- do you remember if they went 6 upstairs with Alex? 7 A. No, I don't. 8 Q. You don't remember? 9 A. I don't remember. Sorry. 10 Q. Okay. 11 So you grab the beers, and Alex goes 12 upstairs, and then what do you do? 13 A. I went upstairs to meet up with Alex. 14 Q. You went upstairs? 15 A. Yes. 16 Q. Okay. 17 And what room did you go into when you got 18 upstairs? 19 A. Derek King's room. 20 Q. And why did you go into Derek King's 21 bedroom? 22 A. 'Cause the door was open and I saw Alex 23 there. 24 Q. And what was happening when you went into 25 Derek King's room? U.S. Legal Support I www.uslegalsupport.com 84 Leon Burns December 21, 2020 1 A. They were hanging out, drinking. 2 There was a bong on the table, but I can't 3 remember if they were smoking out of it or not. 4 MR. FIERBERG: I couldn't understand it. 5 THE WITNESS: They -- they were drinking, 6 like, talking, and there was a bong on the table, 7 but I can't remember if they were smoking out of it 8 at that point. 9 BY MS. AZEVEDO: 10 Q. Who was in the room other than Alex? 11 A. Derek and a couple girls, and then I can't 12 remember, but about two more people. 13 Q. Was Alex sitting down or standing up when 14 you walked in? 15 A. Sitting down. 16 Q. Did Alex have a drink when you walked in? 17 A. No. 18 Q. Did you observe a bottle of alcohol in 19 Derek King's bedroom? 20 A. Not that I can remember. 21 Q