Two former Penn State fraternity leaders pleaded guilty to charges connected to the 2017 hazing death of sophomore Timothy Piazza.
Brendan Young and Daniel Casey were the president and vice president of Beta Theta Pi on Feb. 2, 2017, when 14 pledges participated in a drinking “obstacle course” as part of their bid of acceptance into the frat.
The fraternity, which was supposed to be alcohol-free because of a suspension eight years prior, lined the pledges up in the basement and forced them to down approximately 3 shots of vodka from a “handle,” before running the “gauntlet” which featured chugging a beer, guzzling wine from a bag, and playing beer pong.
Piazza, 19, who was on an empty stomach, was among the pledges to consume the large quantity of alcohol during the night.
After the gauntlet, Piazza was placed on a couch and left unsupervised, and with his blood alcohol content between .28 and .36, he stumbled around the house before falling down the basement stairs at around 11 p.m.
He sustained serious internal injuries from the fall and remained on the floor until someone called 911 at 10:49 the next morning.
The New Jersey native died on February 4 after he was rushed into surgery with a ruptured spleen and Class IV hemorrhagic shock.
Young, 28, and Casey, 27, each pleaded guilty to 14 counts of hazing and one count of reckless endangerment, all misdemeanors.
The two men had participated in and facilitated the hazing event, with Casey serving as the pledge master at the time of the incident.
The 14 counts of hazing equated to one for each pledge with the reckless endangerment charge connected to Piazza.
“There should be no discussion of this case without recognizing the tragic loss of life and resulting devastation for Mr. Piazza’s family and friends,” Pennsylvania Attorney General Michelle Henry said.
“Mr. Piazza was simply seeking to join a social organization for the benefits of community and shared experiences, as so many university students do. Most of those students go on to successful lives and careers — basic expectations following college which Mr. Piazza never had the opportunity to experience.”
Piazza’s death led the university to ban the fraternity order from campus and halt all Greek life parties with booze.
The criminal prosecution of these cases has taken a significant amount of time due, in large part, to appeals of pre-trial court rulings, the attorney general added.
State prosecutors appealed an order that cellphone evidence couldn’t be used, NBC Philadelphia reported.
Following his death, Piazza’s family was “instrumental” in the state legislature passing the “Timothy Piazza Antihazing Law” which includes a felony-graded offense when serious injury or death results.
The two former frat leaders are scheduled to be sentenced on Oct. 1.
