Two former leaders of the Beta Theta Pi fraternity at Penn State University will serve two to four months in prison for their role in a 2017 hazing death.
Ex-fraternity president Brendan Young, 28, and vice president Daniel Casey, 27, were sentenced in Centre County Court Tuesday for their actions in a pledging event that resulted in the death of sophomore Timothy Piazza, the attorney general’s office announced. In July, each pleaded guilty to 14 misdemeanor counts of hazing and reckless endangerment. The jail time includes work release eligibility plus three years probation and community service.
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“Our thoughts are with the Piazza family and everyone affected by this tragedy,” Attorney General Michelle Henry said in a statement. “Nothing can undo the harm Tim suffered seven years ago — nothing can bring Tim back to his family and friends. With the sentences ordered today, the criminal process reached a conclusion.”
Piazza, who was 19 at the time, died from his injuries after taking part in a drinking ritual called “The Gauntlet,” which included consuming an entire bottle of vodka, a beer, and a bag of wine. Piazza, a native of Lebanon, New Jersey, later fell down a flight of stairs and was placed on a couch by fraternity members, who proceeded to periodically slap, punch, and pour beer on him throughout the night.
Piazza attempted to get up and fell head-first into an iron railing, but no one called for medical attention until 11 a.m. the next day. He died two days later from his injuries.
The fraternity was permanently banned from Penn State, and 18 of its members were indicted on involuntary manslaughter charges, though court rulings later dismissed many of the major charges. Four fraternity members were sentenced and served jail time in 2019 for their role.
The Piazza family was key in the state legislature’s passage of the Timothy Piazza Anti-Hazing Law in 2018, which requires felony-grade offenses for serious injuries or death resulting from hazing. The fraternity members in this case could have been sentenced to harsher penalties had that law been in place in 2017.