The Penn State fraternity hazing scandal is an ongoing issue within the
Greek
Greek may refer to:
Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe:
*Greeks, an ethnic group
*Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family
**Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...
life system at
Pennsylvania State University
The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with campuses and facilities throughout Pennsyl ...
. The scandal encompasses hazing, binge drinking, and secretive ritualistic behavior. The scandal includes the separate deaths of college students Joseph Dado,
Marquise Braham,
and Timothy Piazza.
Piazza died as the result of
hazing
Hazing (American English), initiation, beasting (British English), bastardisation (Australian English), ragging (South Asian English) or deposition refers to any activity expected of someone in joining or participating in a group that humiliates, ...
at the
Beta Theta Pi
Beta Theta Pi (), commonly known as Beta, is a North American social Fraternities and sororities in North America, fraternity that was founded in 1839 at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. One of North America's oldest fraternities, , it consist ...
fraternity
A fraternity (; whence, "wikt:brotherhood, brotherhood") or fraternal organization is an organization, society, club (organization), club or fraternal order traditionally of men but also women associated together for various religious or secular ...
at
Pennsylvania State University
The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with campuses and facilities throughout Pennsyl ...
at
University Park,
Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...
. The incident led to the closure of the fraternity's chapter at the university, and at least 26 members of the fraternity had charges of
involuntary manslaughter
Manslaughter is a common law legal term for homicide considered by law as less culpable than murder. The distinction between murder and manslaughter is sometimes said to have first been made by the ancient Athenian lawmaker Draco in the 7th ce ...
dropped by a presiding judge.
The scandal includes one of the largest criminal indictments against a fraternity and its members in American history. More than 1,000 counts were levied against 18 members of Beta Theta Pi, including eight who were charged with involuntary manslaughter and aggravated assault. Additional charges were added later. Piazza's death became a turning point for America's fraternities.
Background
In 2005, Penn State alumnus
Don Abbey, a member of
Joe Paterno
Joseph Vincent Paterno (; December 21, 1926 – January 22, 2012), sometimes referred to as JoePa, was an American college football player, athletic director, and coach. He was the head coach of the Penn State Nittany Lions football, Penn ...
's first-ever
Penn State Nittany Lions football
The Penn State Nittany Lions team represents the Pennsylvania State University in college football. Penn State Nittany Lions, The Nittany Lions compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivisi ...
scholarship class and a
Beta Theta Pi
Beta Theta Pi (), commonly known as Beta, is a North American social Fraternities and sororities in North America, fraternity that was founded in 1839 at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. One of North America's oldest fraternities, , it consist ...
alumnus, donated $1.2 million to renovate the Beta Theta Pi house. In 2006, Abbey raised another $3.5 million in renovation funds.
The renovation was lauded by Paterno and his wife,
Sue Paterno. Throughout the renovation process, fraternity brothers smashed holes in the walls with baseball bats, leading Abbey to predict future damage to the property. He was a staunch critic of
hazing
Hazing (American English), initiation, beasting (British English), bastardisation (Australian English), ragging (South Asian English) or deposition refers to any activity expected of someone in joining or participating in a group that humiliates, ...
. Due to the toxic culture he found in Beta Theta Pi, he installed an extensive video surveillance system to ensure he would be notified if an emergency ever occurred on the property.
The Penn State chapter of Beta Theta Pi was known to have a deep history of hazing. Brothers once held a party on their front porch, yelling
racial slurs
The following is a list of ethnic slurs, ethnophaulisms, or ethnic epithets that are, or have been, used as insinuations or allegations about members of a given ethnic, national, or racial group or to refer to them in a derogatory, pejorati ...
at an African American Penn State student as he walked past the house. The house was once banned for having a front yard littered with used condoms, along with hot sauce covering the entire Great Hall.
In April 2012, Asya Trowell, a pledge of fraternity Omega Essence, a subsidiary organization of
Omega Psi Phi
Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc. () is a List of African-American fraternities, historically African-American Fraternities and sororities, fraternity. It was founded on November 17, 1911 at Howard University. Omega Psi Phi is a founding member of ...
, was brutally hazed, resulting in the expulsions of three Penn State students.
Hazing events left Trowell wounded with black eyes,
epistaxis
A nosebleed, also known as epistaxis, is an instance of bleeding from the nose. Blood can flow down into the stomach, and cause nausea and vomiting. In more severe cases, blood may come out of both nostrils. Rarely, bleeding may be so significan ...
, and bruising in the abdomen.
Trowell was force-fed mayonnaise and had hot sauce poured into her eyes as part of the hazing. The extensive hazing endured caused Trowell to withdraw from Penn State, ceasing her studies at the university.
In May 2012, Centre County District Attorney Stacy Parks Miller opened an investigation into on-campus hazing that occurred inside Penn State’s dormitory quarters, Pennypacker Hall. The case, which is related to the Trowell hazing, involved Resident Life Coordinator Aaron Holloman corrupting his position of authority to haze victims in the dorm rooms he managed. Police arrived to Pennypacker in March 2012 following a 9-1-1 call, and they observed loud paddling noises, which led them to discovering hidden paddles in the residence hall. This served as vital evidence for Trowell’s accusation of undergoing brutal hazing. In September 2016,
Kordel Davis
Kordel is a municipality in the Trier-Saarburg district, in Rheinland-Pfalz, Germany
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the ...
, a Beta Theta Pi pledge, was driven to a clinic after a night of hazing that left a gash on his head.
February 2017 Beta Theta Pi hazing incident
Several students accepted bids to join Penn State’s
Beta Theta Pi
Beta Theta Pi (), commonly known as Beta, is a North American social Fraternities and sororities in North America, fraternity that was founded in 1839 at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. One of North America's oldest fraternities, , it consist ...
in spring 2017, including Tim Piazza, a 19-year-old sophomore engineering student. On the night of February 2, 2017, while undergoing
hazing
Hazing (American English), initiation, beasting (British English), bastardisation (Australian English), ragging (South Asian English) or deposition refers to any activity expected of someone in joining or participating in a group that humiliates, ...
activities for the fraternity, Piazza, on an essentially empty stomach, drank large amounts of alcohol in a short time as part of an obstacle course called "The Gauntlet", which required each pledge to drink from a bottle of vodka, drink a beer, and finally drink from a bag of wine. It was later revealed that Piazza took prescription antidepressants, which contributed to his inebriation. The fraternity was supposed to be alcohol-free after a suspension in 2009.
St. Moritz Security Services failed to shut the party down, despite sending investigators to the house on February 2, 2017, and maintaining knowledge that Beta was supposed to remain alcohol-free.
In this state of
intoxication
Intoxication — or poisoning, especially by an alcoholic or narcotic substance — may refer to:
* Substance intoxication:
** Alcohol intoxication
** LSD intoxication
** Toxidrome
** Tobacco intoxication
** Cannabis intoxication
** Cocaine i ...
, Piazza fell on the basement stairs of the house, knocking him unconscious. He was carried to a couch, where surveillance cameras captured a conspicuous bruise that bloomed on his left abdomen; however, this was shown to have originated from another one of the alcohol-fueled rush events for fraternities that Piazza had attended a week earlier.
Some time later, Piazza regained consciousness and rolled off the couch. Three brothers picked him up and placed him back on the couch. Security footage shows them poking Piazza in the face, to determine if he was okay, but he remained unconscious and unresponsive. Kordel Davis, a newly initiated fraternity chapter member, attempted to render aid to Piazza, encouraging fraternity members to dial 9-1-1 and get an ambulance to the house. He was shoved up against a wall, and his attempts were ignored.
At around 3:30 am on February 3, 2017, Piazza tried to get up, but once he reached a standing position, he fell backward. He continued to stand up, only to repeatedly fall back down. Once he was finally able to maintain balance, he staggered toward the lobby area of the house, but fell again headfirst into an iron railing and landed on a stone floor, likely incurring serious head trauma. He got up and tried to reach the front door but fell headfirst into it, knocking himself unconscious again. He later tried once more to ascend the basement stairs and was missing until several of the fraternity brothers discovered him several hours later behind the bar in the basement, cold and breathing rapidly.
It was at this point that Piazza was carried upstairs. After several minutes of debating on what the next step should be, the conclusion was made that Piazza's injuries were indeed serious and that he would require medical attention. Before emergency assistance arrived, the brothers wiped blood from his face and attempted to dress him to warm him. Around 6:00 AM, the
Penn State football
The Penn State Nittany Lions team represents the Pennsylvania State University in college football. The Nittany Lions compete in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision as a member of the Big Ten Conference, which they joined in 1993 aft ...
head athletic trainer walked over to Piazza’s body to get to work. At 10:48 AM, emergency services arrived and Piazza was brought to
Mount Nittany Medical Center
Mount Nittany Medical Center (MNMC), formerly Centre Community Hospital, is a hospital in College Township, Pennsylvania near State College. It is an acute-care facility offering emergency, medical, surgical, diagnostic and community services. ...
, but was quickly transported to
Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center
Penn State Health Milton S. Hershey Medical Center (MSHMC) is a 619-bed non-profit, tertiary, research and academic medical center headquartered in Hershey, Pennsylvania and serving central Pennsylvania. The hospital is owned by the Penn State ...
because of the severity of his injuries.
Upon arrival, Piazza was rushed into surgery, where he was discovered to have a
ruptured spleen
A splenic injury, which includes a ruptured spleen, is any injury to the spleen. The rupture of a normal spleen can be caused by trauma, such as a traffic collision.
Signs and symptoms
In minor injuries with little bleeding, there may be abdomi ...
and was in
class IV hemorrhagic shock. His brain had
swollen
Edema (American English), also spelled oedema (British English), and also known as fluid retention, swelling, dropsy and hydropsy, is the build-up of fluid in the body's tissue. Most commonly, the legs or arms are affected. Symptoms may inclu ...
to the point that roughly half of his skull had to be removed to relieve the pressure. The surgeons attempting to save his life deemed the injuries to be likely non-recoverable, and Piazza was pronounced dead in the early morning of February 4, 2017. He is estimated to have had a
blood alcohol content
Blood alcohol content (BAC), also called blood alcohol concentration or blood alcohol level, is a measurement of alcohol intoxication used for legal or medical purposes.
BAC is expressed as mass of alcohol per volume of blood. In US and many i ...
of nearly 0.40 on the night of the hazing incident.
Brendan Young claimed that, following the hazing incident, Piazza "looked fucking dead".
Beta Theta Pi prosecutions

The scandal resulted in one of the largest hazing prosecutions in US history. On May 5, 2017, following a comprehensive
grand jury
A grand jury is a jury empowered by law to conduct legal proceedings, investigate potential criminal conduct, and determine whether criminal charges should be brought. A grand jury may subpoena physical evidence or a person to testify. A grand ju ...
investigation conducted by
Centre County
Centre County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 158,172. Its county seat is Bellefonte. Centre County is composed of the State College, PA Metropolitan Statistical Area ...
District Attorney
In the United States, a district attorney (DA), county attorney, county prosecutor, state attorney, state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or solicitor is the chief prosecutor or chief law enforcement officer represen ...
Stacy Parks Miller, eighteen members of the fraternity were charged in connection with Piazza's death: eight were charged with
involuntary manslaughter
Manslaughter is a common law legal term for homicide considered by law as less culpable than murder. The distinction between murder and manslaughter is sometimes said to have first been made by the ancient Athenian lawmaker Draco in the 7th ce ...
and the rest with other offenses, including hazing.
In addition to the fraternity brothers, the
Beta Theta Pi
Beta Theta Pi (), commonly known as Beta, is a North American social Fraternities and sororities in North America, fraternity that was founded in 1839 at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. One of North America's oldest fraternities, , it consist ...
fraternity itself was also charged. Its Penn State fraternity branch was closed after its president ordered it banned from campus indefinitely. In September 2017, the fraternity and its eighteen members faced a combined total of more than 850 criminal charges.
In October 2018, Michael Angelo Schiavone pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit furnishing alcohol to minors.
Investigators discovered texts in which Schiavone admitted to operating the fraternity's “Slush Fund.”
Schiavone states the “Slush Fund” was utilized to purchase alcohol for the fraternity's parties.
Alleged perpetrators
Prosecutors filed the following charges in the alleged crime and its cover-up:
* Daniel Casey (age 19): 201 counts, including involuntary manslaughter; charges reduced to reckless endangerment, hazing, and furnishing alcohol to a minor
* Brendan Young (age 21): 200 counts, including involuntary manslaughter; charges reduced to reckless endangerment, hazing, and furnishing alcohol to a minor
* Jonah Neuman (age 19): 79 counts, including involuntary manslaughter; charges reduced to reckless endangerment, hazing, and furnishing alcohol to a minor
* Lars Kenyon (age 19): 52 counts, including reckless endangerment; charges reduced to furnishing alcohol to a minor
* Michelangelo Schiavone (age 21): 52 counts, including reckless endangerment; charges reduced to hazing and furnishing alcohol
* Nick Kubera (age 19): more than 50 counts, including involuntary manslaughter; charges reduced to hazing and furnishing alcohol
* Ryan Foster (age 21): one count of tampering with evidence
* Edward Gilmartin (age 20): one count of tampering with evidence
Tampering with evidence and endangerment charges have also been dismissed against three other students, Joseph Ems (ghost brother and leader of dangerous hazing events in the fall of 2016), Ryan McCann, and Lucas Rockwell.

On November 14, 2017, ten more members were charged in connection with Piazza's death. The new charges were filed after the Centre County District Attorney announced that the
Federal Bureau of Investigation
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and Federal law enforcement in the United States, its principal federal law enforcement ag ...
had recovered video showing that Piazza had been given at least 18 drinks in an 82-m82 minuteshat the video had been intentionally deleted.
The additional defendants are:
* Joshua Kurczewski (age 19): eight counts, including involuntary manslaughter, hazing, and furnishing alcohol to a minor
* Ryan Burke (age 21): eight counts, including involuntary manslaughter, hazing, and furnishing alcohol to a minor; pleaded guilty on June 13, 2018
* Jonathan Kanzler (age 19): eight counts, including involuntary manslaughter, hazing, and furnishing alcohol to a minor
* Aiden O'Brien: eight counts, including involuntary manslaughter, hazing, and furnishing alcohol to a minor
* Brian Gelb: three counts, including hazing, furnishing alcohol to a minor, and unlawful acts relative to liquor
* Patrick Jackson: three counts, including hazing, furnishing alcohol to a minor, and unlawful acts relative to liquor
* Reggie Goeke: three counts, including hazing, furnishing alcohol to a minor, and unlawful acts relative to liquor
* Mike Fernandez: three counts, including hazing, furnishing alcohol to a minor, and unlawful acts relative to liquor
* Donald Prior: three counts, including hazing, furnishing alcohol to a minor, and unlawful acts relative to liquor
Ems (age 19) gained additional charges: hazing, furnishing alcohol to a minor, and unlawful acts relative to liquor stemming from forcing a pledge to drink massive amounts of alcohol in September 2016, sending him to a clinic with blood gushing out of his forehead. Braxton Becker (age 20), who had the charge of tampering with evidence dropped against him, was charged with it again (and later acquitted) after new footage suggested he deleted the footage that led to these new charges. Becker was also charged with (and acquitted of) obstructing administration of law and charged with (and convicted of) hindering apprehension.
On November 1, 2017, Lars Kenyon claimed "the judge got it right" and Kenyon had to "
iguresome stuff out". In November 2017, at least 26 members face charges.
''Commonwealth of Pennsylvania v. Beta Theta Pi - Alpha Upsilon et al.''
On August 11, 2017, on the fifth day of the preliminary hearing, it was announced by lead investigators that basement footage from the bid acceptance on February 2, 2017, had been deleted by a defendant already charged in the case. Lead prosecutor Centre County District Attorney Stacy Parks Miller noted that additional charges would be filed as a result of this finding.
On the same day, defense attorneys for a number of the defendants started to blame Tim Bream, the
Penn State Nittany Lions football
The Penn State Nittany Lions team represents the Pennsylvania State University in college football. Penn State Nittany Lions, The Nittany Lions compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivisi ...
head athletic trainer and Beta Theta Pi live-in advisor. He was present during the night of Tim Piazza's bid acceptance, although he has never been charged in the case. After unsuccessful attempts by attorneys to have Bream subpoenaed, the judge in the case ordered that Bream have his hearing on possible contempt of court and avoiding his subpoena.
On February 8, 2019, Parks Miller received a law license suspension of one year and one day for communicating improperly with judges and defense attorneys. Parks Miller was defended by
Bruce Castor
Bruce Lee Castor Jr. (born October 24, 1961) is an American lawyer and retired Republican Party (United States), Republican politician from Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. He was appointed as the first Solicitor General of Pennsylvania in March ...
throughout the trial. Parks Miller was reinstated to practice law in September 2021.
Media coverage
Initial coverage
The scandal attracted a significant amount of national media attention, and was regularly the main topic of many TV talk shows; including ''
Good Morning America
''Good Morning America'', often abbreviated as ''GMA'', is an American breakfast television, morning television program that is broadcast on American Broadcasting Company, ABC. It debuted on November 3, 1975, and first expanded to weekends wit ...
'', ''
The Today Show
''Today'' (also called ''The Today Show'') is an American morning television show that airs weekdays from 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. on NBC. The program debuted on January 14, 1952. It was the first of its genre on American television ...
'', ''
CBS This Morning
''CBS This Morning'' (''CTM'') is an American morning television program that aired on CBS from November 30, 1987 to October 29, 1999, and again from January 9, 2012 to September 6, 2021. On November 1, 1999, the original incarnation was repla ...
'' and on
CNN
Cable News Network (CNN) is a multinational news organization operating, most notably, a website and a TV channel headquartered in Atlanta. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable ne ...
.
Beta Theta Pi
Thomas R. Kline, the lawyer for the Piazza family, was featured on talk shows extensively.
On May 16, 2017,
Mehmet Oz
Mehmet Cengiz Oz ( ; ; born June 11, 1960), also known as Dr. Oz (), is an American television presenter, physician, author, educator and government official serving as the 17th administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services sinc ...
appeared on ''The Today Show'' to discuss warning signs of dangerous binge drinking.
On June 12, 2017,
Nancy Grace
Nancy Ann Grace (born October 23, 1959) is an American legal pundit, commentator and television journalist. She hosted ''Nancy Grace (TV program), Nancy Grace'', a nightly celebrity news and current affairs (news format), current affairs show ...
discussed the case on her podcast.
The case was the headline of several magazine articles. On November 15, 2017,
Caitlin Flanagan
Caitlin Flanagan (born November 14, 1961) is an American writer and social critic. A contributor to ''The Atlantic'' since February 2001, she was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for Commentary in 2019.
Her 2004 piece for ''The New Yorker'' was ...
published the article "Death at a Penn State Fraternity" in ''
The Atlantic
''The Atlantic'' is an American magazine and multi-platform publisher based in Washington, D.C. It features articles on politics, foreign affairs, business and the economy, culture and the arts, technology, and science.
It was founded in 185 ...
''. ''The Atlantic'' article pointed out the ties between Beta Theta Pi and
Joe Paterno
Joseph Vincent Paterno (; December 21, 1926 – January 22, 2012), sometimes referred to as JoePa, was an American college football player, athletic director, and coach. He was the head coach of the Penn State Nittany Lions football, Penn ...
. ''
Vanity Fair'' published the article "How a Fatal Frat Hazing Became Penn State's Latest Campus Crisis" on October 3, 2017. ''
Time
Time is the continuous progression of existence that occurs in an apparently irreversible process, irreversible succession from the past, through the present, and into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequ ...
'' magazine published the article "'Those Families Are Changed Forever.' A Deadly Year in Fraternity Hazing Comes to a Close"
''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'' extensively covered the case including articles "18 Penn State Students Charged in Fraternity Death", "Prosecutors Taking Tougher Stance in Fraternity Hazing Deaths", and "Penn State Student's Dying Hours Play Out in Courtroom Video".
On February 2, 2018,
Vice News
Vice News (stylized as VICE News) is Vice Media's alternative current affairs channel, producing daily documentary essays and video through its website and YouTube channel. It promotes itself on its coverage of "under-reported stories". Vice Ne ...
published the documentary "Penn State is Still Keeping Secrets on Frat Row".
Hulu miniseries
On October 10, 2022, it was reported that
Robert Greenblatt
Robert Greenblatt (born 1959/1960) is an American television executive, former chairman of NBC Entertainment and former chairman of WarnerMedia Entertainment. He has since launched his production company, The Green Room.
Early life and educati ...
is developing a
Hulu
Hulu (, ) is an American Subscription business model, subscription streaming media service owned by Disney Streaming, a subsidiary of the Disney Entertainment segment of the Walt Disney Company. It was launched on October 29, 2007, initially as ...
miniseries entitled ''Death at Penn State,'' based on
Caitlin Flanagan
Caitlin Flanagan (born November 14, 1961) is an American writer and social critic. A contributor to ''The Atlantic'' since February 2001, she was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for Commentary in 2019.
Her 2004 piece for ''The New Yorker'' was ...
's 2017 article in ''The Atlantic'' about the events surrounding the Piazza case.
Guilty plea
One of the fraternity brothers charged in the death of Piazza pleaded guilty on June 13, 2018, to nine charges, making him the first in the case to enter a guilty plea. Ryan Burke, age 21, pleaded guilty to four counts of hazing and five counts relating to unlawful acts involving liquor in the deadly injuries Piazza sustained following a night of heavy drinking and hazing. Burke was accused of giving Piazza a bottle of vodka at the Beta Theta Pi party. Burke admitted his role in the hazing of Piazza, which included being present for and actively encouraging a gauntlet of drinking games and an obstacle course involving Piazza and other pledges.
On July 31, 2018, Burke was sentenced to three months of
house arrest
House arrest (also called home confinement, or nowadays electronic monitoring) is a legal measure where a person is required to remain at their residence under supervision, typically as an alternative to imprisonment. The person is confined b ...
for his role in the hazing death of Piazza. He pleaded guilty to nine misdemeanor charges, including four counts of hazing and five counts involving unlawful acts related to alcoholic beverages. In addition to the house arrest, Burke was sentenced to 27 months of probation and was ordered to pay fines, costs, and restitution.
Timothy J. Piazza Anti-Hazing Law
The grand jury that recommended charges against the brothers also directed Centre County District Attorney Stacy Parks Miller to investigate Penn State University and its role and response to hazing. During many months of testimony from multiple witnesses, including former pledges and others with first-hand experience, the Grand Jury collected evidence about the University's response and handling of hazing across the board. The Grand Jury received testimony regarding the prior Penn State fraternity hazing-related death of Joe Dado and a suicide linked to hazing pressures at the Altoona branch of Penn State. Witnesses aware of the ongoing hazing and extreme drinking over the years say they notified Penn State authorities, but little was done, despite extensive records documenting the hazing, abuse, and other dangerous behavior. Pledges that testified confirmed that hazing had become routine behind the closed doors of the fraternity houses, with Penn State turning a blind eye and adopting a hands-off approach.
The testimony revealed that pledges were routinely forced to drink extreme and potentially deadly levels, and brothers would inflict physical and mental abuse on pledges, including violence and sleep deprivation. More extreme behaviors, including sexual, physical, and emotional abuse, and the killing of small animals, were documented. The pledges were threatened that if they told anyone of the activities, there would be consequences. As a result of this evidence, the Grand Jury released a scathing 236-page report regarding hazing and excessive alcohol consumption at Penn State fraternities.
The report recommended sweeping changes to Pennsylvania's hazing law and Penn State's inadequate manner of handling hazing. The report called for the legislature to establish "Tim's Law", creating more severe punishments for hazing. It directed Penn State to strengthen its hazing policies. The report recommended a zero-tolerance policy against those who violated hazing laws and the implementation and enforcement of severe restrictions for underage drinking. The report recommended strengthening laws against furnishing alcohol to minors and that Penn State create a "pledge's bill of rights" that outlines acceptable and unacceptable behavior during the pledge process. Finally, the report recommended that Penn State establish a confidential hazing hotline.
The anti-hazing legislation was subsequently submitted for consideration in the full state Senate.
Lawmakers named the anti-hazing legislation after Tim Piazza.
Timothy J. Piazza's Law
On August 24, 2021, New Jersey Governor
Phil Murphy
Philip Dunton Murphy (born August 16, 1957) is an American politician, diplomat, and financier serving as the 56th governor of New Jersey since 2018. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he was elected governor i ...
signed into law S84/2093, requiring public and non-public middle schools and high schools, as well as higher education institutions, to adopt anti-hazing policies and penalties for violations of the policies. S84/2093 is nicknamed the “Timothy J. Piazza Law” after Timothy Piazza.
Advocates of the law include:
*
New Jersey Department of Education
The New Jersey Department of Education (NJ DOE) administers state and federal aid programs affecting more than 1.4 million public and non-public elementary and secondary school children in the state of New Jersey. The department is headquartered ...
Acting Commissioner Angelica Allen-McMillan
*New Jersey Secretary of Higher Education Brian Bridges
*Acting
New Jersey Attorney General
The attorney general of New Jersey is a member of the executive cabinet of the state and oversees the New Jersey Department of Law and Public Safety, Department of Law and Public Safety. The office is appointed by the governor of New Jersey, confi ...
Andrew Bruck
Andrew Bruck (1982/1983) was the Acting Attorney General of New Jersey. He took office on July 17, 2021, after being appointed by Governor Phil Murphy. Effective February 14, 2022 Bruck was replaced as Acting Attorney General by Matt Platkin, ...
*
New Jersey Senator Kip Bateman
*
New Jersey Senator Troy Singleton
Troy E. Singleton (born June 30, 1973) is an American Democratic Party politician who has represented the 7th Legislative District in the New Jersey Senate since January 9, 2018. He served in the New Jersey General Assembly from November 21, 2 ...
*
New Jersey Senator Linda R. Greenstein
Linda R. Greenstein (born June 7, 1950) is an American attorney and politician who has served since 2010 as a member of the New Jersey Senate representing the 14th legislative district. She previously served in the General Assembly from 2000 to ...
*
New Jersey Senate
The New Jersey Senate is the upper house of the New Jersey Legislature by the Constitution of 1844, replacing the Legislative Council. There are 40 legislative districts, representing districts with an average population of 232,225 (2020 figure ...
Minority Leader Tom Kean, Jr.
With Timothy J. Piazza's Law in effect, hazing in New Jersey is upgraded from a fourth-degree crime to a third-degree crime when it results in death or serious bodily injury; and hazing in New Jersey is upgraded from a disorderly persons offense to a fourth-degree crime if it results in bodily injury.
Educational response

Legal scholars continually point to the Piazza case as grounds for change in hazing prevention legislation. The ''Journal of College and University Law'', published in conjunction with
Rutgers Law School
Rutgers Law School is the law school of Rutgers University, with classrooms in Newark and Camden, New Jersey. It is the largest public law school and the 10th largest law school, overall, in the United States. Each class in the three-year J.D. pr ...
, analyzed the Pennsylvania laws created out of the Piazza case and determined that not enough legal changes have yet been made.
Many sociologists and psychologists pointed towards the prevalence of
groupthink
Groupthink is a psychological phenomenon that occurs within a group of people in which the desire for harmony or conformity in the group results in an irrational or dysfunctional decision-making outcome. Cohesiveness, or the desire for cohesivenes ...
in the Piazza case. This scenario has been analyzed in several books, including ''Discover Sociology: Core Concepts'' and
Harvard University Press
Harvard University Press (HUP) is an academic publishing house established on January 13, 1913, as a division of Harvard University. It is a member of the Association of University Presses. Its director since 2017 is George Andreou.
The pres ...
's ''Why We Act: Turning Bystanders Into Moral Rebels''.
''
The Chronicle of Higher Education
''The Chronicle of Higher Education'' is an American newspaper and website that presents news, information, and jobs for college and university faculty and student affairs professionals, including staff members and administrators. A subscription ...
'' pointed out that four pledges died in 2017 alone, but the added media coverage the Piazza case has attracted can help lead to monumental change for the first time.
In 2020, the
Villanova University School of Law
The Charles Widger School of Law (known as Villanova Law) is the law school of Villanova University, a private Roman Catholic research university in Villanova, Pennsylvania. It was opened in 1953 and is approved by the American Bar Association (A ...
analyzed a
Penn State football
The Penn State Nittany Lions team represents the Pennsylvania State University in college football. The Nittany Lions compete in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision as a member of the Big Ten Conference, which they joined in 1993 aft ...
hazing lawsuit in which a victim sued head coach
James Franklin. The scholars of the ''Moorad Sports Law Journal'', point to the Timothy J. Piazza law as precedent and indicate that 95% of college students do not report hazing. The scholars believe that the student who sued Coach Franklin should be taken seriously, given the new Pennsylvania anti-hazing laws created out of the Piazza case.
Aftermath
On September 1, 2017, Beta Theta Pi defendant Joseph G. Ems appeared on
ABC News ABC News most commonly refers to:
* ABC News (Australia), a national news service of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation
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with his lawyer. He has since been sued by the Piazza family.
Jim and Evelyn Piazza have gone on to speak to thousands of college students throughout the
United States
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
to end hazing on campuses.
Kordel Davis, Beta Theta Pi pledge, led a hazing prevention tour in fall 2019 entitled "One Night a Pledge".
Penn State settled with the Piazza family to avoid further civil litigation.
Tim Bream, the
Penn State Nittany Lions football
The Penn State Nittany Lions team represents the Pennsylvania State University in college football. Penn State Nittany Lions, The Nittany Lions compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivisi ...
head athletic trainer, attempted to sue Penn State for wrongful termination, but the judge ruled against him, citing prescription drugs being stolen right out of his work desk. In March 2021, Bream sued Penn State a second time, claiming the university violated his contract and created "intolerable" working conditions as a result of his role in the
Beta Theta Pi
Beta Theta Pi (), commonly known as Beta, is a North American social Fraternities and sororities in North America, fraternity that was founded in 1839 at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. One of North America's oldest fraternities, , it consist ...
house.
On March 30, 2021, settlements were reached with 25 defendants and
third party defendants in civil suits.
Penn State President
Eric J. Barron
Eric James Barron (born October 26, 1951) is an American academic administrator who was the 18th president of Pennsylvania State University from 2014 until 2022. He previously was the 14th president of Florida State University and director of the ...
attempted to transform Penn State's Greek life system following Piazza's death; he announced his retirement in June 2022. In March 2023, Spotlight PA reported on an internal memo, which indicated Penn State planned to roll back certain oversights of campus Greek life, including changes that would "end the regular monitoring of chapter houses" and "allow first-semester recruitment." The university later denied those changes had been officially implemented.
In December 2021, Centre County Judge Brian Marshall ruled that Penn State could take ownership of the Beta Theta Pi house.
In July 2024, Beta Theta Pi defendants Brendan Young and Daniel Casey both pleaded guilty to 14 counts of hazing and one count of reckless endangerment. In October 2024, the two were sentenced to two to four months in prison, along with three years of probation and community service.
See also
*
Beta Theta Pi Incidents
*
List of hazing deaths in the United States
This is a list of hazing deaths in the United States. This is not an exhaustive list. An exact list is not available because there is no central system for tracking hazing deaths, and the role of hazing in some deaths is subject to disagreement. ...
*
Matt's Law
Matt's Law is a California law that allows for felony prosecutions when serious injuries or deaths result from hazing rituals. The bill amended the California Education Code and California Penal Code to change charges for some hazing rituals fr ...
*
Killing of Sanda Dia
Sanda Dia was a Belgian student who died in the Antwerp University Hospital in 2018 as a result of a Reuzegom fraternity hazing ritual in Vorselaar when he was aged 20. He was a student at the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven (known as "KU Leuven ...
References
Further reading
*
Penn State frat pledge's skin had turned gray by morning after fall, prosecutor says*Davis, Kordel (September 14, 2020)
"Fraternity Membership: a Death Wish" ''Medium''.
A Penn State student fell down the stairs at a fraternity — and for nearly 12 hours, no one called police* Swofford, Justin J. (August 2020
The Hazing Triangle: Reconceiving the Crime of Fraternity Hazing(discussing Piazza incident and critiquing subsequent antihazing law)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Penn State fraternity hazing scandal
2017 in Pennsylvania
Beta Theta Pi
Crimes in Pennsylvania
Deaths by person in Pennsylvania
February 2017 crimes in the United States
February 2017 in the United States
Josh Shapiro
Deaths from hazing
Pennsylvania State University people
University folklore
Fraternities and sororities in the United States