Harassment Hazing Lawyers

Hazing Law Firm Protecting the Dignity of Students

In 2016, Ryan Abele was forced to get up at 5:45 AM by his 'brothers' in Sigma Nu.

They had all been drinking the night before, and Ryan himself was still drunk. As he was rushed out the door, his 'brothers' yelled at and berated him, urging him down the stairs. As a result, he slipped and damaged a major artery in his brain. He died a few days later. Harassment hazing is an umbrella term for any hazing that threatens the physical, emotional, or psychological health of its victims. Harassment includes demands that threaten, verbally abuse, or humiliate initiates; deprive them of sleep; or force them to fulfill acts of service not required of senior group members.

Why Harassment Hazing Is Dangerous

Verbal abuse, humiliation, and sleep deprivation are all ways of breaking people down. It conditions them for being remade into a member of the "group," whether it's a fraternity, football team, or a military unit. It's effective—but it's designed to develop compliance and elicit obedience. In the wrong hands, it's horrifying. Even fatal.

Psychological warfare is not a toy—it's not a responsible use of one's power or seniority, and it has no place on our campuses. When young men and women experience sexual assault, serious injury, or death, it's time to understand that these activities are not harmless fun or traditions worthy of any school-sanctioned organization.

Harassment Hazing Law Firm Helping Victims Nationwide

Last decade, our firm struck at the core of dysfunctional, abusive fraternities with the verdict for the death of Chad Meredith. It is still the largest hazing verdict ever handed down by a jury in a hazing case. In honor of his memory, Attorney David Bianchi helped draft the Chad Meredith Act—the law that made hazing a felony in Florida. Our firm was also instrumental in getting justice against those who killed Andrew Coffey, another young man destroyed by hazing. Now our missing is to take our anti-hazing law to the federal level, bringing an end to soft hazing penalties nationwide.

When families are robbed of their loved ones by harmful 'leaders' engaging in ritualized abuse, our firm is the one they turn to. If your child was harmed or killed by harassment hazing, contact our hazing injury attorneys to review your case. We won't let your loss go unanswered.