On Sunday, March 7, a student at Bowling Green State University died after an alleged hazing incident involving forced consumption of far too much alcohol. The student, Stone Foltz, was a sophomore at the school’s College of Business. In a statement, the university said Foltz was hospitalized after he was involved in “alleged hazing activity” at an off-campus house belonging to Pi Kappa Alpha, much like the Andrew Coffey case that we were involved in at Florida State University. The chapter in question was the Delta Beta chapter.
Stone was hospitalized on Thursday after his fraternity ‘brothers’ dropped him off at his apartment following a night of drinking. He had been given a “copious amount of alcohol,” a representative for the family said. His roommates called 911, but Foltz was already in serious condition.
The 20-year-old was in critical condition for three days at ProMedica Toledo Hospital, but he tragically succumbed to his injuries on Sunday. A Pi Kappa Alpha spokesperson said they were “horrified and outraged” at what happened to Foltz. The fraternity moved swiftly to permanently suspend the Delta Beta chapter and expel all members from the International Fraternity.
The university put the fraternity on interim suspension and took additional steps to remove them from campus life. “Given that Pi Kappa Alpha is not currently recognized as a registered student organization, the fraternity’s Greek letters were removed from its on-campus residence this morning,” said university spokesperson Alex Solis.
The story is being reported here:
- Stone Foltz: What we know about the BGSU student who died after an alleged fraternity hazing incident
- Bowling Green University student dead after alleged alcohol-fueled hazing incident
- Bowling Green student dies after drinking ‘copious’ alcohol at a frat event under investigation for hazing
Alcohol Abuse & Hazing
Alcohol abuse and fraternity hazing are inextricably linked. Fraternities employ compulsory alcohol consumption as a way to build “camaraderie” through suffering and abuse, but the forced binge drinking can have tragic consequences. Our firm has represented the families of Chad Meredith, Andrew Coffey, Michael Starks, and Antonio Tsialas to name a few—all young men whose lives were cut short due to hazing-related alcohol abuse.
Our role in each of these cases was to vigorously pursue everyone responsible for what happened. We’ve left no stone unturned in doing so. These cases are infuriating, and juries have no patience for such behavior. In the cases we’ve investigated, it’s not just the fraternity’s culture of abuse and secrecy that allowed hazing to occur—the university’s complacency and acceptance of the worst excesses of Greek life were to blame as well.
To end hazing forever, the families of hazing victims will need to hold any and all responsible entities accountable, but they need to make sure that they do it in the right way.
Our hearts go out to the family of Stone Foltz. We hope his family gets justice in his memory.