• Former Florida A&M band members face stiffer charges for hazing death

    The Florida state's attorney office is charging 12 former FAMU band members with manslaughter in the hazing death of drum major Robert Champion who died on a bus after one of the band's performances. NBC's Brian Williams reports.

    By Andrew Rafferty, Staff Writer, NBC News

     

    Twelve former Florida A&M University band members are now facing more severe charges for the 2011 death of drum major Robert Champion, after Florida prosecutors on Monday filed manslaughter counts against them.

    Last May, ten of the ex-band members were charged with hazing, a third-degree felony, for Champion’s death during a hazing ritual on a bus after the band performed at a football game between Florida A&M and archrival Bethune-Cookman University. 

    But on Monday, the Orange-Osceola State Attorney's Office sent an email to the defendants’ attorneys notifying them that their clients will face second-degree manslaughter charges in addition to the hazing charges.


    Two more former band members were also charged on Monday.

    The manslaughter carries with it a maximum sentence of 15-years imprisonment under Florida law, while the maximum sentence for hazing would have only been 5 years.   

    It is not yet known why State Attorney Jeff Ashton upgraded the charges and decided to make a case against two more of the former band members.  Calls for comment by NBC News were not returned.

    But at least one defense attorney representing a former FAMU band member said he was not surprised to be notified of the more serious charges.

    Bill Sharpe, who represents 25-year-old defendant Rikki Wills, called the move “a scare tactic” to encourage a plea bargain.

    “It is not uncommon for them [Florida prosecutors] to do that in a high profile case,” said Sharpe.

    The attorney said his client, who was Champion’s roommate, still plans to go to trial to prove his innocence.

    Champion’s parents had said they were disappointed last May when then-state attorney Lawson Lamar decided to charge those involved only with felony hazing.

    On Monday, the couple cheered the more severe penalty instituted by Ashton, who was sworn in as the Orange-Osceola state attorney earlier this year.

    "This is what we've been saying all along and, finally, someone has the courage to hold these folks accountable,” Christopher Chestnut, an attorney representing Champion’s parents, told the Orlando Sentinel. 

    He said the felony hazing charge was simply “a slap on the wrist and basically an endorsement to continue the practice."

    Champion died from internal bleeding after receiving a beating that shed light on the famed bands culture of hazing.

    In November 2011 he agreed to participate in the ritual called “crossing bus C,” in which he entered a dark bus and was kicked and punched while trying to make his way to the back.

    After he pushed his way through the beat-down and made it to the end of the bus, Champion complained of feeling sick. Shortly afterwards he collapsed and died “hemorrhagic shock caused by blunt-force trauma,” according to his autopsy.

    His death led to the suspension of the band, the retirement of its longtime director and the resignation of FAMU president James Ammons.

    A pretrial conference has been scheduled for early August.

  • 22 arrest warrants issued after alleged fraternity hazing death at Northern Illinois

    By NBCChicago.com

    Arrest warrants were issued Monday for 22 people wanted in connection with the death of a Northern Illinois University freshman, which authorities say was alcohol- and hazing-related.


    David Bogenberger was found dead the morning of Nov. 2 at the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity house near the DeKalb campus. Toxicology tests showed his blood-alcohol concentration was about five times the legal limit for driving.

    The cause of death has been attributed to cardiac arrhythmia, with alcohol intoxication as a significant condition contributing to death, officials said.

    Officials said arrest warrants were issued for five Pi Kappa Alpha leaders: fraternity president Alexander M. Jandik, 21, and event planner Steven A. Libert, 20, of Naperville, as well as fraternity vice president James P. Harvey, 21; fraternity pledge adviser Omar Salameh, 21; and fraternity secretary Patrick W. Merrill, 19, all of DeKalb.

    They've been charged with Class 4 felony hazing.

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    Additionally, arrest warrants were issued for 17 fraternity members: Michael J. Phillip, Jr., 20, of Western Springs, Ill.; Thomas F. Costello, 20, of Munster; David R. Sailor, 20, of Princeton, Ill.; Alexander D. Renn, 19, of Naperville; Michael A. Marroquin, 20, of Roselle; Estevan A. Diaz, 22, of South Beloit, Ill.; Michael D. Pfest, 23, of Chicago; Andres Jiminez, Jr., 19, of Glendale Heights; Isaiah Lott, 19, of Cupertino, Calif.; Andrew W. Bouleanu, 21, of Skokie; Nsenzi Salasini, 20, of Mt. Prospect; as well as Hazel A. Vergaralope, 21; Nicholas A. Sutor, 19; Nelson A. Irizarry, 19; Johnny P. Wallace, 20; Daniel S. Post, 20; and Russ Coyner, 21, all of DeKalb.

    They're charged with providing alcohol to underage pledges and "creating a situation where the pledges felt compelled to consume alcohol as part of membership initiation and the Greek parenting process," officials from the DeKalb Police Department and the DeKalb County Coroner's Office said in a written statement.

    Bogenberger's family, including his parents, Gary and Ruth Bogenberger, also issued a statement in which they said universities must do more to "stop the hazing and initiation rituals."

    Their statement continued:

    No other family should endure what we are going through. Yet, we are losing these talented, beautiful and hopeful young people because of illegal drinking unrestrained by maturity and exacerbated by social pressure.

    We are trying to understand the reality of our David’s death. It is almost impossible for us to accept that David is gone at the age of 19; that our future does not include his excitement at learning and growing; becoming a man; marrying and having children; that these events will never happen.

    We appreciate the many condolences and kindnesses that have reached us. We acknowledge and appreciate the diligence of the law enforcement professionals of DeKalb County who have investigated the circumstances of David’s death and who, with the steps taken today, seek accountability for a horrible event.

    But we also must acknowledge the concern we feel for the families of those charged today. The events of Nov. 1 and 2 unalterably changed the course of too many lives. And for what?

    We have no desire for revenge. Rather, we hope that some significant change will come from David’s death. Alcohol poisoning claims far too many young, healthy lives. We must realize that young people can and do die in hazing rituals. Alcohol-involved hazing and initiation must end.

  • Judge rules no jail time in first FAMU hazing death sentencing

    Red Huber / Orlando Sentinel

    Brian Jones looks to the court gallery before being sentenced in an Orlando courtroom for his role in the hazing death of a Florida A&M University band member on Monday.

    By Kari Huus, NBC News

    The first of 12 defendants in the deadly hazing case of Florida A&M drum major Robert Champion was sentenced by an Orlando court on Monday.

    Brian Jones, 23, avoided a jail term, but was sentenced to six months of community supervision — a strict monitoring arragement that requires an ankle monitor and frequent check-ins with probation officials — followed by two years of probation. He is also required to do 200 hours of community service, The Associated Press reported.

    The band had traveled to Orlando from Tallahassee to perform at a football game when the fellow band members subjected Champion to a severe beating on the bus — in a ritual called "crossing Bus C" — which caused him to fall unconscious, and then die, on Nov. 19, 2011.


     

    Jones, a percussionist, faced up to five years in prison and a $5,000 fine. But the judge said Jones’ role had been relatively limited.

    "This young man's part in this horrible act ... as compared with many others from what I've seen is minimal," said Judge Marc Lubet, ruling in Orange County Court. "It was an isolated incident in this man's life for which he's shown remorse."

    Lubet quoted Abraham Lincoln as he announced the sentence, saying that "mercy bears richer fruit than strict justice," the Orlando Sentinel reported.

    After initially pleading not guilty, Jones entered a no-contest plea Oct. 9 to a third-degree felony hazing charge.

    Champion’s parents attended Monday's court proceedings. Prior to the sentencing, his mother challenged the idea that Jones’ role had been minor:

    "You and I know that's not true," said Pam Champion, addressing Jones, and carrying a picture of her son. "You played a critical role."

    "You won't be able to put it out if your mind...It will haunt you," she told Jones.

    The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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  • Four Calif. high school students arrested over claims of sex abuse during hazing

    View more videos at: http://nbclosangeles.com.

    By NBC News staff and wire reports

    LOS ANGELES -- Four Los Angeles-area high school students have been arrested in an investigation into complaints that varsity soccer players sexually abused younger team members in hazing rituals that victims said were conducted with the complicity of a coach.

    The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department opened an investigation at the request of the school district after a parent of one boy who claimed to have been harassed by teammates came forward to lodge a complaint, school officials said.

    In a statement on the Hacienda La Puente Unified School District's website, its superintendent Barbara Nakaoka said she shared people's "shock and sadness."

    "Our school community faces the tragic allegation that student-to-student hazing was taking place between members of a sports team at La Puente High School. The allegations are deeply concerning, and they have understandably caused tremendous anxiety and anger among students and parents," she said.

    Comparisons to Penn State 'unfounded'
    Nakaoka said the media had been "aggressively covering the story" amid comparisons with events at Penn State, where assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky abused boys both on and off campus. In June, Sandusky was convicted of 45 offenses.

    "I cannot allow this comparison to go unchallenged; if I were to let these unfounded comments go unchecked, then I would be indirectly telling students that their voices are not heard," she said.


    A statement issued on Monday by the sheriff's department special victims bureau said more than 70 students at La Puente High School have been interviewed about allegations of hazing, and that four were arrested and released to the custody of their parents.

    "The hazing incidents have gone on for several years and may have risen to the level of a crime," sheriff's Sergeant Al Fraijo said.

    "At this point, there is no information to indicate that any member of faculty or coaching staff were directly involved," he added.

    Sandusky victim sues Penn State for 'shameful' handling of complaints

    But a lawyer representing the families of four boys who claim they were victimized said the hazing and assaults were carried out by team members against younger fellow players "at the behest and encouragement" of a coach.

    The attorney, Brian Claypool, said the coach "lured young boys to a back room to facilitate varsity members of the team sexually assaulting the boys by attempting to sodomize them with a foreign object."

    The attorney representing the four alleged hazing victims has now hired a clinical psychologist to help them cope with what they say is sexual assault, NBCLosAngeles.com reported.

    "This is not hazing, this is a sexual assault. These boys when I saw them were in serious trauma. I did a suicide assessment on one of them," psychologist Michelle Golland said according to NBCLosAngeles.com, adding that the alleged victims were going through something akin to post-traumatic stress disorder.

    "PTSD untreated will go into serious anxiety, serious depression. All of the families involved, they all need therapy as well, because they are in this vortex of trauma," Golland said.

    One of the alleged victims, named as "John," told the Dr. Drew Show on cable channel HLN that six or seven people had thrown him to the floor and were "beating on me" in one incident.

    Florida A&M University suspends dance group amid new hazing probe

    The Los Angeles Times and other media reported on Tuesday that a coach, who has not been identified, has been placed on administrative leave.

    Claypool also said the hazing occurred next to a coach's office, and that "the school knew or should have known that these horrific acts were being carried out on school grounds."

    Texas mother furious that male vice principal spanked her daughter

    He accused school officials of "attempting to cover up the ongoing hazing incidents," and said he planned to file suit against the high school and the Hacienda La Puente Unified School District. 

    Reuters and NBC News' Ian Johnston contributed to this report.

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  • Florida A&M University suspends dance group amid new hazing probe

    By NBC News wire services

    TALLAHASSEE, Florida -- Florida A&M University, shaken by the hazing death of a marching band drum major last year, suspended a student dance group on Tuesday after receiving a tip that members were involved in an off-campus hazing incident over the weekend.

    Interim President Larry Robinson ordered the suspension of the Torque Dance Team until an investigation could be completed. The move follows tightened scrutiny of alleged hazing activities following the November death of Robert Champion.

    Prosecutor: At least 13 to be charged in FAMU band hazing case

    "We have zero tolerance for hazing," Robinson said, adding the suspension followed an anonymous tip from a parent. "It is unconscionable that a student organization would participate in any hazing activity considering what has transpired in the past year."


    The campus police chief, dean of students and director of student activities were all notified of the allegations. Robinson said they have launched an investigation, but details about what may have happened weren't released.

    According to university records, the dance team had already been inactive since December 2011 because it didn't have an adviser. 

    Eleven of the 13 people charged in the death of drum major Robert Champion are facing third degree felony charges in what the prosecutor calls a case of 'homicide by hazing.' NBC's Kerry Sanders reports.

    Champion, 26, died on a band charter bus after the university's renowned "Marching 100" band traveled from its Tallahassee campus to Orlando to participate in the annual "Battle of the Bands" and the "Florida Classic" football game between two historically black universities.

    Officials with the Florida Department of Law Enforcement determined he died due to a brutal hazing incident in which he was subjected to a ritualistic beating. Thirteen band members have been charged in connection with Champion's death.

    Also following Champion's death, FAMU suspended new membership intake for all clubs and organizations and implemented more strict procedures. That recruitment ban is set to be lifted this month.

    Reuters and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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  • Officer fired over hazing of gay sailor on nuclear submarine

    By msnbc.com news services

    A gay sailor on a Navy nuclear submarine was hazed for months about his sexuality, including being called "Brokeback" in reference to the movie about homosexual cowboys, according to a news report.

    The sailor endured the hazing, believing it would get better over time. But it eventually led him to contemplate suicide and he feared he could snap and hurt someone else or himself, he wrote in a note, The Associated Press reported, citing an investigative report it had obtained through the Freedom of Information Act.


    The hazing occurred in 2011 aboard the Kings Bay, Ga.-based USS Florida. The vessel's top enlisted officer, Master Chief Machinist's Mate Charles Berry, was fired over the case due to dereliction of duty, the Navy said on March 30. In his role as chief of the boat, Berry had to consult the commanding officer of issues surrounding enlisted sailors.

    The sailor who was targeted for abuse was well-liked, and his fellow sailors did not realize the toll that the remarks -- including being called a derogatory name for someone who is gay -- were having on him, AP reported.

    While docked at the Diego Garcia port in the Indian Ocean, another man attempted to rape him and threatened him with a knife, the report said.

    Several junior officers involved in the hazing were subject to disciplinary action, such as loss of pay and rank. There was a culture of hazing and sexual harassment on the vessel and not enough knowledge about Navy policies to prevent the abuse, the Navy report said.

    "The Navy's standards for personal behavior are very high and it demands that sailors are treated with the dignity and respect they deserve," the Navy said in a March 30 statement. "When individuals fall short of this standard of professionalism and personal behavior, the Navy will take swift and decisive action to stop undesirable behavior, protect victims and hold accountable those who do not meet its standards." 

    Hank Nuwer, who has done decades of research on hazing in schools and the military, said it was "a significant and positive response by the Navy in regard to requiring a chain of command to take responsibility in the event of a substantial hazing allegation."

    However, he said, the Navy might consider moving up its timetable when an allegation of hazing is reported aboard such a vessel since victims were stuck in the close quarters with nowhere to go nor hide.

    " ... getting a culture of change with regard to Navy hazing is going to take many years, if at all," he wrote in an email to msnbc.com. "Such 'traditions' as having Navy people crossing the equator or reaching a certain petty officer rank were winked on by Navy brass so long that completely eradicating hazing stands about as much a small chance as there is eradicating hazing in college fraternity life."

    Msnbc.com's Miranda Leitsinger contributed to this report.

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  • California teacher, 4 students arrested over alleged hazing

    View more videos at: http://nbclosangeles.com.

    By NBC Los Angeles and news services

    FONTANA, Calif. -- A Southern California high school teacher was arrested on suspicion of directing students to assault at least one other student in a classroom hazing incident, police said Sunday.

    Emmanuel Delarosa, 27, along with four students were arrested Saturday after a student who said he was a victim of the hazing contacted school police, Fontana police Sgt. Robert Morris said.

    Investigators alleged that Delarosa, a summer school teacher at A.B. Miller High School, knew about the hazing — and in at least one instance directed some students to carry out the hazing to curb behavior problems in the classroom, Morris said.

    Police: High school cheerleaders suspended for hazing incident in Utah

    He declined to describe the nature of the hazing, citing the ongoing investigation.


    At least one student suffered minor injuries, Morris said.

    NBC Los Angeles reported that several students has been interviewed by detectives.

    Jail records show that an 18-year-old student arrested in the case faces charges of assault, child cruelty and attempted sodomy. Fernando Manuel Salgado was being held in lieu of $100,000 bail.

    5 found duct-taped: Boston University students under investigation

    The names of the other three male students were not released because they are minors. Police said they were arrested for investigation of assault and child endangerment.

    Delarosa was booked for investigation of child endangerment and released on bail.

    The Associated Press and NBC Los Angeles contributed to this report.

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  • Police: High school cheerleaders suspended for hazing incident in Utah

    By Sevil Omer, NBC News

    Nine Utah high school cheerleaders are accused of smearing peanut butter on a new squad member who has a peanut allergy during the hazing of a dozen younger girls, police officials say.


    Ogden Police Lt. Scott Conley said the nine cheerleaders at Ogden High School have been suspended in the May 4 incident. A separate investigation will determine if any other students provoked the treatment of the girls, he said.

    During the alleged hazing, the cheerleading group was surrounded by at least 30 other classmates, mostly boys, Conley told msnbc.com.

    “I don’t have the exact number of how many were watching, but in this age of cellphones someone was recording it,” Conley said.

    Conley said investigators were trying to determine if the incident fits the crime of hazing, a misdemeanor offense. Parents of the victims have refused to press charges, but Conley said it was not up to them to decide and that the investigation continues. He said the teens involved are minors and the case would be handled in juvenile court.

    Conley said nine senior class cheerleaders invited 12 incoming members to an Ogden home for a pizza party, but took the younger girls to a local park to celebrate earning a position on the squad. There, the senior cheerleaders blindfolded the girls and ordered them to do push-ups, sit-ups and other exercises while covering them with ketchup, mustard, flour and peanut butter, he said.

    “During the course of all this, the blindfolded cheerleaders were also squirted with a liquid that was initially reported as being urine,” Conley said. “But we haven’t been able to determine that, but now some are saying that the liquid was pickle juice.”

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    Conley said the girl with the peanut allergy suffered a reaction and was treated, but has recovered.

    School officials said the senior cheerleaders were suspended for between one to five days, depending on their involvement.

    "We want all of our students to know that we want them to not only get an education in our district, but also enjoy other activities, and have a great, whole school experience," Ogden School District spokeswoman Donna Corby told the Salt Lake Tribune. "In my opinion, this has clouded the experience for our incoming sophomores, and I feel badly about that."

    Attempt by msnbc.com to contact Corby was unsuccessful on Thursday.

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  • FAMU band to remain suspended through 2012-13 in aftermath of Robert Champion's hazing death

    Don Juan Moore / AP

    Florida A&M Marching 100 Band during the game against Delaware State Hornets at Bragg Memorial Stadium on Oct. 1, 2011 in Tallahassee, Fla.

    By James Eng, NBC News

    Florida A&M University’s famed marching band will remain suspended through the 2012-13 academic year as the school continues to wrestle with the aftermath of the hazing death of a drum major last fall.


    FAMU President James Ammons made the announcement during a teleconference Monday with the university’s board of trustees. He said time is needed to come up with a new set of guidelines before the Marching 100 can be reinstated.

    "I was heavily influenced by the need to be respectful to Robert Champion's family as well as the other victims," Ammons said. "A young man lost his life and others suffered serious injuries."

    Eleven of the 13 people charged in the death of drum major Robert Champion are facing third-degree felony charges in what the prosecutor calls a case of 'homicide by hazing.' NBC's Kerry Sanders reports.

    Authorities say Champion, 26, was badly beaten during a hazing incident on a band bus following a football game in Orlando. He died within an hour of the attack. His death, which was ruled a homicide, has drawn public scrutiny to what critics say has been a tradition of hazing at the Tallahassee-based university.

    Band director Julian White, who had been with the prestigious band for 40 years, resigned under pressure last week.  He had been put on paid administrative leave shortly after Champion’s death in November. Two music professors also resigned recently.

    Archive video: Parents to sue bus company

    Thirteen people were charged last week in connection with Champion's death -- 11 are facing felony hazing charges and two others are charged with misdemeanor hazing.

    "No one would have expected that his college experience would have included being pummeled to death," Lawson Lamar, the state attorney for Orange-Osceola County, said at the news conference announcing the charges. “I have come to believe that hazing is a term for bullying, bullying with a tradition.”

    The Marching 100, which incorporates dance moves into traditional marching formations, had been a source of pride for the school. It played in inaugural parades for Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama, and in several Super Bowls. According to its website, many of the Marching 100's techniques have become standard operating procedures for high school and college programs throughout the nation.

    The suspension means there will be no marching band for the upcoming college football season. University officials are looking into the impact on football game ticket sales and other contractual obligations.

    Ammons said there is no timetable yet for bringing the band back.

    "Once I feel that the issues are resolved, then we'll look at the reimplementation of the band," he told trustees.

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  • Prosecutor: At least 13 to be charged in FAMU band hazing case

    13 people will be charged in the case of a Florida marching band drum major who was killed in Orlando. NBC's Chris Clackum reports.

    By msnbc.com staff and news services

    Updated at 10:05 p.m. ET: Thirteen people were charged Wednesday in the death of Florida A&M university drum major Robert Champion, who died after being beaten during a hazing ritual in November.


    State Attorney Lawson Lamar announced the charges at a news conference Wednesday, five months after Champion, 26, died aboard a chartered bus parked outside an Orlando hotel. He called the young man’s death an American tragedy.

    Prosecutors say Champion was hazed to death by bandmates in November after the annual Florida Classic football game in Orlando. Florida’s A&M football team had lost.

    "No one would have expected that his college experience would have included being pummeled to death," Lamar, the state attorney for Orange-Osceola County, said during the news conference. “I have come to believe that hazing is a term for bullying, bullying with a tradition.”

    Lamar said 11 of the 13 people charged face felony charges. Most of the charges were third-degree felonies for "hazing with death," punishable under Florida law by a maximum of six years in jail, according to Lamar. Twenty others face misdemeanor charges, including some for others victims who were not seriously injured.

    Lamar said he would not release names until all are in custody, according to the Orlando Sentinel.

    Authorities announced Wednesday evening that Caleb Jackson, 24, Rikki Wills, 24, were charged with felony hazing. Wills was a drum major last fall. Jackson has been booked 10 times before, for domestic battery, disorderly conduct and aggravated battery, according to inmate records.

    The medical examiner ruled Champion’s death a homicide in the course of hazing by the university’s celebrated Marching 100 band. Detectives told The Associated Press that he suffered blunt trauma blows and died from shock caused by severe bleeding. Hazing that involves bodily harm is a third-degree felony in Florida.  

    One of the hazing traditions, according to The New York Times, was to punch a band member walking down the aisle of the bus.

    FAMU marching band members to face charges in drum major hazing death

    In a six-minute 911 call obtained by the AP, an unidentified caller asked the dispatcher for an ambulance, saying that Champion had just vomited.

    "His eyes are open, but he's not responding," the caller said. Another person took the phone and said, “He is cold.”  

    Shortly after, the call was disconnected.

    Four students were dismissed after the alleged hazing, but Champion’s parents were frustrated that no charges had been filed.

    Witnesses have told Champion’s parents that he might have been targeted because he opposed the culture of hazing that they say has long existed in the band. It was also suggested to them that he was targeted because he was gay and a candidate for chief drum major.

    But Champion's parents dismissed the notion that his sexual orientation triggered this incident.

    "The main reason that we heard is because he was against hazing, and he was totally against it," Champion's father, Robert Champion Sr. told the AP.

    His parents have sued the bus company.

    The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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  • FAMU marching band members to face charges in drum major hazing death

    Following the death of 26-year-old drum major Robert Champion, Rep. Corrine Brown, D-Fla., discussed the decision by Florida A&M's trustees to ignore calls from the state governor and other educators to suspend its president.

    By msnbc.com and news services

    Five months after Robert Champion, a marching band drum major, died aboard a charter bus, allegedly after being hazed, prosecutors are poised to file charges against at least five band members detectives say are responsible for his death.

    Prosecutors plan to hold a press conference on Wednesday.

    Danielle Tavernier, a spokeswoman for the Orange-Osceola State Attorney’s Office, told the Orlando Sentinel that there will be a range of felony and misdemeanor charges. Law enforcement officials told the Sentinel that they interviewed more than 50 witnesses.

    No arrests had been made by Tuesday afternoon.

    Robert Champion, 26, was found unresponsive aboard the bus in November after the annual Florida Classic football game in Orlando. Florida A&M’s football team had lost.

    The medical examiner ruled his death a homicide in the course of hazing by the university’s celebrated Marching 100 band. Detectives told The Associated Press that he suffered blunt trauma blows and died from shock caused by severe bleeding. Hazing that involves bodily harm is a third-degree felony in Florida.  

    In a six-minute 911 call obtained by the AP, an unidentified caller asked the dispatcher for an ambulance, saying that Champion had just vomited.

    "His eyes are open, but he's not responding," the caller said. Another person took the phone and said, “He is cold.”  

    Shortly after, the call was disconnected.

    Four students were dismissed after the alleged hazing, but Champion’s parents were frustrated that no charges had been filed.

    Witnesses have told Champion’s parents that he might have been targeted because he opposed the culture of hazing that they say has long existed in the band. It was also suggested to them that he was targeted because he was gay and a candidate for chief drum major.

    But Champion's parents dismissed the notion that his sexual orientation triggered this incident.

    "The main reason that we heard is because he was against hazing, and he was totally against it," Champion's father, Robert Champion Sr. told the AP.

    His parents have sued the bus company.

    Robert Champion, an FAMU drum major, died from blunt force trauma on a bus after the band had performed at a football game. Today his parents said their son was gay, but this wasn't a hate crime. NBC's Brian Williams reports.

    Parents of Florida A&M hazing victim to sue bus company 

    Since Champion’s death, other hazing allegations have emerged. Freshman Bria Hunter told WFTV that 11 days before the drum major’s death, she was rushed to the emergency room because her leg had gone numb. It turned out her thigh was broken.

    She explained that she allowed the hazing, "So we can be accepted."

    Three band members have been arrested for beating Hunter, according to the AP.

    Meantime, the university’s longtime band director, Julian White, remains on paid leave. The university’s trustees have voted to strengthen its anti-hazing policy, requiring that everyone connected to the school – even volunteers and vendors – report any hazing they hear about within 24 hours.

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  • 5 found duct-taped: Boston University students under investigation for possible hazing

    By Sevil Omer, NBC News

    Boston police are investigating a possible hazing incident involving five Boston University students who were found stripped down to their underwear, duct-taped and covered head-to-toe in honey, hot sauce and other condiments.

    “All five were shivering and had horrified and fearful looks on their faces,” Boston officers wrote in a report, according to the Boston Globe.

    Boston police said they responded to a newly renovated home in Allston just after midnight on Monday after neighbors complained of hearing loud music.


    "Mainly the loud music, but I also heard stuff like, 'Yes sir,' and 'No sir,' as if they were in the military and someone was giving them orders," said Marc Vuong, a neighbor and Boston University freshman, NBC News affiliate WHDH-TV in Boston reported on Monday.

    According to a Boston police report, officers discovered five students who “were all tied together via duct tape wrist-to-wrist to form a human chain,” according to WHDH-TV. Police said they also noticed the men had “red welts and markings all over their backs,” WHDH-TV reported.

    Police said they also found about a dozen other college students scattered around the two-story home; some had been hiding, while others were pretending to be sleeping, WHDH-TV reported.

    A Boston University spokesperson told WHDH-TV on Tuesday that the people behind the alleged hazing were Boston University students. The house also belonged to a national fraternity, Alpha Epsilon Pi, but was not recognized by Boston University. Boston University withdrew its recognition of the fraternity nearly 20 years ago, according to school officials.

    A spokesman for the Boston Police Department told the Boston Globe charges against nine Boston University students were likely. They also could be expelled from the school, the Globe reported.

    Kenneth Elmore, Boston University’s dean of students, told WHDH-TV that two of the men involved in Monday’s alleged hazing already faced expulsion for their role in a sorority hazing incident last month.

    "It's very troubling that they would have another incident, same organization, some members the same some different, but that they would be involved in this," Elmore told WHDH-TV.

    The alleged hazing incident at Sigma Delta Tau, a sorority at Boston University, involved underage drinking off the school’s campus.

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