Fraternity and 18 Members Charged in Penn State Student’s Death

Pledge died after falling several times; others failed to seek help, jury says

Source: WSJ

By Kris Maher

May 5, 2017

Prosecutors in Pennsylvania charged a Penn State fraternity and 18 of its members in the death of a 19-year-old pledge in February, saying that they failed to get him help when he suffered severe injuries after becoming intoxicated.

Centre County District Attorney Stacy Parks Miller said Timothy Piazza, a sophomore engineering student, died with toxic levels of alcohol in his blood during a ceremony at the Beta Theta Pi chapter at the university’s campus in State College, Pa.

Mr. Piazza fell several times, including down a long flight of stairs, and surveillance video showed that he suffered for hours but that no fraternity members summoned help, according to a grand-jury report released Friday.

The fraternity itself and eight of the brothers were charged with involuntary manslaughter. Other charges include aggravated and simple assault, evidence tampering, alcohol-related violations and hazing. The fraternity faces 50 counts of hazing and 48 counts of furnishing alcohol to minors.

“This is a very sad day for Centre County-it’s been sad ever since we lost a child for reasons that are totally preventable. A child who just wanted to come to college here, who put his faith in Penn State,” Ms. Miller said.

The Beta Theta Pi international fraternity called the charges “incredibly disheartening.” The fraternity said it doesn’t tolerate hazing or alcohol abuse in any form by its members.

“The former undergraduate members were well educated by the International Fraternity and Penn State on these policies; however, they are entitled to the presumption of innocence as they face these charges,” the fraternity said in a statement.

Lawyers represented the former fraternity members couldn’t be reached for comment.

Penn State President Eric Barron said the details about Mr. Piazza’s death contained in the grand-jury report were “heart-wrenching and incomprehensible.”

“The university community continues to mourn his tragic death, but no pain we feel can begin to compare to the devastating heartbreak that Timothy’s family and friends are experiencing,” Mr. Barron said.

Penn State permanently banned Beta Theta Pi from the university in March and has taken other steps against the Greek system. It suspended another fraternity last month for violating university rules.

Mr. Barron said the incident pointed to a broader problem. “For anyone looking across the national landscape, you realize that we have a national problem that is associated with excessive drinking,” he said.

According to the grand-jury report, the Beta Theta Pi fraternity brothers required Mr. Piazza and 13 other pledges to run a gauntlet and chug vodka, beer and wine at different locations. Pledges drank between four and five beverages within two minutes, and a social event followed in which more alcohol was consumed, according to the report.

Surveillance video shown to grand jurors depicted Mr. Piazza drinking during the gauntlet session and later “staggering, while hunched over.” According to a detective, Mr. Piazza fell down the fraternity’s basement stairs where he was found face down.

A text message sent by a fraternity brother stated: “Also Tim Piazza might be a problem. He fell 15 feet down a flight of stairs, hair-first, going to need help.”

The surveillance video shows in gruesome detail how Mr. Piazza was unable to regain consciousness after injuring himself and how the fraternity brothers failed to seek medical attention, according to the grand-jury report. At one point, fraternity brothers placed a backpack full of books on Mr. Piazza’s back so he wouldn’t choke on his own vomit. Several brothers poured liquid on him and slapped him, but they refused to call for help when one brother suggested they call 911.

The next morning Mr. Piazza was found unconscious in the fraternity basement. Only after a further delay did fraternity brothers call for an ambulance. At the hospital Mr. Piazza was found to have extensive abdominal bleeding and severe injuries to his brain. After several surgeries, he died the following day.