Each year, as students return to campus and fraternity pledging begins, the risks of hazing rise. Too often, what is disguised as tradition becomes abuse, leading to catastrophic injuries or wrongful death. At Stewart Tilghman Fox Bianchi & Cain, P.A., we know these tragedies all too well. With 45 years of experience, our partner David W. Bianchi has represented families devastated by hazing and has been at the forefront of legislative efforts to end it.
In a recent Law.com article, David underscored the urgency of preventing hazing injuries before they occur. His message is one we have delivered for decades: hazing is a serious and ongoing problem that leaves families grieving and students' lives permanently altered.
The Continuing Toll of Hazing
Since 2000, more than 100 students have died or been seriously injured from hazing-related incidents. Behind those numbers are parents who will never see their children again, and survivors forced to live with lifelong physical and emotional injuries. Each case reflects systemic failures in universities and fraternities to stop dangerous rituals that have no place on campus.
Laws Born from Advocacy
David Bianchi is widely regarded as the nation’s leading hazing lawyer, and his work has shaped laws that now save lives. After representing victims and families, he collaborated with lawmakers to draft and pass statutes like Florida’s Andrew’s Law and Missouri’s Danny’s Law.
Both laws expand Good Samaritan protections for the first person to call 911 in a hazing emergency, encouraging lifesaving intervention while ensuring that those truly responsible face consequences. These reforms reflect the principle that hazing must not only be punished after the fact but prevented in real time.
Reforms Still Needed
While legislative progress is vital, hazing will only end when universities and fraternities adopt genuine accountability measures. STFBC has long called for reforms such as:
- Automatic expulsion of individuals and chapters facilitating hazing or events where hazing took place.
- Increased transparency so parents and students know the history of hazing allegations tied to specific fraternities.
- National fraternity accountability, where headquarters back their anti-hazing policies with meaningful oversight and enforcement, not lip service.
Without these safeguards, dangerous traditions persist unchecked, and students remain at risk.
A Call to Action
As the fall semester approaches, universities must be proactive. Hazing incidents spike during pledging season, and administrators should send a clear message: hazing will not be tolerated. Enforcement must be swift, decisive, and highly visible, including the automatic expulsion of any students accused of perpetrating hazing acts against other students.
For fraternities, the responsibility is even greater. Brotherhood cannot be built on coercion, humiliation, or violence. Leaders at every level must reject practices that put lives at risk and create safer ways to foster unity.
Time for a New Kind of Campus Life
For students and families, the start of the fraternity recruitment season should not be a time of fear. It should be a time of growth, learning, and community. At STFBC, we will continue to fight for the parents and students whose lives have been shattered by hazing—and we will continue to push for reforms that make these tragedies a thing of the past.
Until universities and fraternities fully embrace accountability, and until the law compels them to do so, hazing will remain a danger. But through advocacy, litigation, and legislative change, we will not relent until these abusive practices are brought to an end.