A Guide to Hazing Lawsuits and Campus Accountability for Families in Farmers Branch, Texas

A Parent’s Worst Fear in Farmers Branch

It’s a Friday night in the middle of pledging season. Your son, a new member of a fraternity at a university just hours from your home in Farmers Branch, hasn’t answered his phone since the afternoon. When he finally calls, his voice is slurred. He describes a “group workout” that sounds more like a punishment: forced sprints, endless push-ups, being sprayed with a hose until he could barely breathe. He’s disoriented and afraid. The fraternity leaders have told him and the other pledges to stick together, to keep quiet, and that “what happens in the house stays in the house.” Fear of retaliation silences him. Meanwhile, you’re left in Farmers Branch, feeling helpless and terrified that your child’s pursuit of community and friendship has turned into a dangerous nightmare right here in Texas.

This scenario is not a hypothetical. Right now, in a Harris County courtroom, we are actively litigating one of the most serious hazing cases in Texas—the $10 million lawsuit we filed on behalf of Leonel Bermudez against the University of Houston, the Pi Kappa Phi fraternity’s Beta Nu chapter, 13 individual members, and multiple corporate entities. According to the lawsuit and supporting news coverage, Bermudez, a pledge, suffered severe hazing including being forced to perform hundreds of push-ups and squats under threat of expulsion, sprayed in the face with a hose “similar to waterboarding,” and made to consume milk and hot dogs until vomiting. This brutal ordeal culminated in a diagnosis of rhabdomyolysis—a severe, life-threatening muscle breakdown—and acute kidney failure that required a four-day hospitalization. You can read the extensive coverage from Click2Houston and ABC13.

This definitive guide is for you, the parents and families in Farmers Branch and across Dallas County, who may be confronting a similar crisis. Whether your child attends the University of North Texas just up the road in Denton, a major institution like Texas A&M or UT Austin, or the University of Houston, we will explain what modern hazing truly looks like, the Texas legal framework for holding individuals and institutions accountable, and the concrete steps your family can take to seek justice and prevent further harm. If you are in an emergency situation, call 911. For immediate legal guidance, contact us 24/7 at 1-888-ATTY-911.

Hazing in 2025: Beyond the Hollywood Stereotypes

For families in Farmers Branch, the term “hazing” might conjure images of outdated movies or vague stories of minor pranks. The reality in 2025 is far more systematic, digitally enabled, and dangerously concealed. Hazing is any intentional, knowing, or reckless act that endangers a student’s mental or physical health for the purpose of joining or maintaining membership in a group. It thrives not on overt malice alone, but on a culture of tradition, secrecy, and the immense power imbalance between new members and established leaders.

Modern hazing falls into three escalating categories. Understanding them is crucial for identifying what your child might be experiencing:

Tier 1: Subtle Hazing – The Foundation of Control
This involves behaviors that emphasize power imbalance and are often dismissed as “harmless tradition.” It includes being on call 24/7 as a designated driver, forced servitude like cleaning members’ apartments, social isolation from non-members, and demeaning nicknames. Digitally, it manifests as mandatory, instant responses to all-hours GroupMe messages and enforced social media monitoring.

Tier 2: Harassment Hazing – Creating a Hostile Environment
This causes clear emotional or physical discomfort. It includes sleep deprivation through 3 AM wake-up calls, verbal abuse and “grilling” sessions, forced consumption of unpalatable food (like spoiled milk or excessive amounts of bread), and extreme, punitive calisthenics marketed as “workouts.” Public humiliation, such as being forced to wear degrading costumes in public or perform embarrassing acts, is also common.

Tier 3: Violent Hazing – High Potential for Catastrophe
These are the acts that lead to hospitalization, permanent injury, and death. This tier includes forced alcohol consumption during “Big/Little” nights or drinking games, physical beatings or paddling, dangerous physical “tests” like blindfolded tackles, sexualized hazing including forced nudity, and being abandoned in extreme environments. The Leonel Bermudez case at UH involved Tier 3 hazing: the physical abuse led directly to kidney failure.

For Farmers Branch families, it’s vital to know that hazing extends beyond fraternities. It occurs in sororities, athletic teams, spirit groups like cheerleading, marching bands, Corps of Cadets programs, and other campus organizations. The common thread is a dynamic where seeking belonging is exploited through coercion, and the fear of speaking up is weaponized against victims.

The Texas and Federal Legal Framework for Hazing

In Texas, hazing is not a minor transgression; it is a criminal offense with serious civil liability. The governing statute is Chapter 37, Subchapter F of the Texas Education Code, which provides a powerful framework for accountability that families in Farmers Branch can leverage.

Texas Criminal Hazing Law (Education Code §37.151-§37.156)
Texas law defines hazing broadly as any intentional, knowing, or reckless act that endangers a student’s mental or physical health for purposes of initiation or affiliation into a group. Key provisions every Farmers Branch parent should know:

• Consent is NOT a Defense (§37.155): Even if a student “agreed” to participate, it is not a legal defense. Courts recognize the coercive power of peer pressure and the desire to belong.
• Criminal Penalties Escalate with Harm (§37.152):
  • Class B Misdemeanor: Basic hazing (up to 180 days jail, $2,000 fine).
  • Class A Misdemeanor: Hazing that causes injury requiring medical treatment.
  • State Jail Felony: Hazing that causes serious bodily injury or death.
• Organizations Can Be Prosecuted (§37.153): Fraternities, sororities, and other groups can face fines up to $10,000 if they authorized the hazing or if an officer knew and failed to report it.
• Immunity for Good-Faith Reporting (§37.154): A person who reports hazing in good faith is immune from civil or criminal liability resulting from the report. This is critical for encouraging bystanders to call for help.

Civil Liability: The Path to Compensation and Accountability
A criminal case is brought by the state to punish wrongdoing. A civil lawsuit, which we handle, is brought by the victim or their family to recover damages and force institutional change. In a civil hazing case, multiple parties can be held liable:

1. Individual Perpetrators: The students who planned, carried out, or supervised the abuse.
2. The Local Chapter: As a legal entity, it can be sued for creating a dangerous environment.
3. The National Fraternity/Sorority Headquarters: They can be liable for negligent supervision if they knew or should have known about dangerous patterns. Our investigation always traces this connection.
4. The University: Public universities like UH or UT have a duty to protect students. They can be liable for deliberate indifference if they were aware of systemic risks and failed to act.
5. Third Parties: Landlords of off-campus houses, alumni advisors, and even alcohol providers under dram shop laws.

Federal Overlay: Title IX, Clery, and the Stop Campus Hazing Act
Federal law adds another layer of potential liability. Title IX requires universities to address hazing that is sexual in nature or creates a hostile environment based on sex. The Clery Act mandates reporting of certain campus crimes, which can include hazing-related assaults. The Stop Campus Hazing Act of 2024 is a major new development; it requires colleges to publish more transparent hazing data and strengthen prevention programs, with provisions phasing in through 2026.

The Texas Hazing Intelligence Engine: Data-Driven Accountability for Farmers Branch Families

At The Manginello Law Firm, we don’t just take a case—we build it from the ground up using a proprietary investigative framework we call the Texas Hazing Intelligence Engine. This is how we identify every potentially liable entity, from the individual in the house to the national insurance policy. For parents in Farmers Branch, this means we start your case with a deep, pre-existing understanding of the Texas Greek landscape.

Our engine is built on four pillars of public data:

1. IRS B83 Backbone: Over 125 Texas-registered Greek organizations (house corporations, alumni chapters) with Employer Identification Numbers (EINs) and legal addresses.
2. Texas University Matrix: 96 campuses across the state, understanding where Farmers Branch students commonly attend.
3. Metro-Level Organization Mapping: Tracking 1,423 Greek-related entities across 25 Texas metros, including 510 in the Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington metro that encompasses Farmers Branch.
4. Brand Overlap Analysis: Cross-referencing national brands that appear in both IRS and metro data to prove their interconnected Texas presence.

Public Records: Fraternities, Sororities & Greek Organizations Serving Farmers Branch Families

If you are a parent in Farmers Branch, you deserve to know who really stands behind the Greek organizations connected to your child. Below is a sample from our directory, illustrating the types of entities we track. These are public records; listing them is not an accusation but a demonstration of the depth of our investigative reach.

Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington Metro Area (Your Local Ecosystem):

• Beta Upsilon Chi Fraternity, EIN 74-2911848, 12650 N Beach St #30, Fort Worth, TX 76244 (Cause IQ metro listing)
• Texas Kappa Sigma Educational Foundation Inc, EIN 74-1380362, PO Box 470061, Fort Worth, TX 76147-0061 (IRS B83 filing)
• Kappa Delta Sorority – Gamma Beta Chapter, Denton, TX (Cause IQ metro listing – Texas Woman’s University)
• Frisco TX Alumni Chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi Inc, EIN 92-0575785, 5729 Lebanon Rd, Frisco, TX 75034 (IRS B83 filing)

Major Statewide Hubs Where Farmers Branch Students Attend:

• Pi Kappa Alpha Fraternity, EIN 74-6064445, 1855 Highway 69 N, Nederland, TX 77627 (IRS B83 filing – connected to UH/Epsilon Kappa Chapter)
• Beta Nu Pi Kappa Phi Fraternity Housing Corporation Inc, EIN 46-2267515, 10601 Big Horn Trail, Frisco, TX 75035 (IRS B83 filing – connected to UH case)
• Sigma Alpha Epsilon – Texas Rho Corp., Austin, TX (Cause IQ metro listing – UT Austin house corporation)
• Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi, multiple EINs including 26-3170920 (Denton) and 90-0293166 (College Station) (IRS B83/National honor society)

This directory is part of our proactive strategy. When we take a case, we already know how to find the housing corporations, alumni associations, and national entities that may hold insurance and ultimate responsibility. We don’t start from zero.

Where Farmers Branch Families Send Their Students: Campus-Specific Realities

Families in Farmers Branch have a wealth of higher education options, from local commuter campuses to major statewide universities with robust Greek systems. Understanding the specific landscape of these schools is critical.

University of North Texas (Denton) & Texas Woman’s University

For many Farmers Branch students, UNT in nearby Denton is a primary choice. It is a major public university with active Interfraternity Council (IFC), Panhellenic, National Pan-Hellenic Council (NPHC), and Multicultural Greek Council chapters. Incidents here would typically involve Denton police and campus authorities. The university maintains conduct records, and patterns of violations can be crucial evidence.

Southern Methodist University (Dallas)

SMU, in the heart of Dallas, is a private university with a prominent and historically influential Greek system. Its private status affects certain procedural rules, but it does not shield it from liability for negligence. SMU has faced hazing incidents, such as a 2017 Kappa Alpha Order chapter suspension for paddling and forced drinking. For Farmers Branch families, SMU is a local institution where we understand the unique dynamics of a private, affluent campus culture.

University of Texas at Dallas (Richardson)

As a growing research institution, UT Dallas has an expanding Greek life presence. Incidents here fall under the UT System’s policies and Richardson jurisdiction.

Major Statewide Hubs: UH, Texas A&M, UT Austin, Baylor

Many Farmers Branch students also venture further, drawn to the tradition and academic reputations of Texas’s flagship schools.

• University of Houston: As the site of our flagship Bermudez v. UH case, UH is under intense scrutiny. The Pi Kappa Phi Beta Nu chapter was suspended and voted to surrender its charter in November 2025 following the allegations.
• Texas A&M University: Known for its Corps of Cadets and strong Greek life, A&M has faced serious lawsuits, including a Sigma Alpha Epsilon case where pledges allegedly suffered chemical burns requiring skin grafts and a Corps case involving simulated sexual acts.
• University of Texas at Austin: UT maintains a public hazing violations log, offering a degree of transparency. Organizations like Pi Kappa Alpha have been sanctioned for forced consumption and calisthenics. This public record becomes powerful evidence of prior knowledge.
• Baylor University: Baylor has faced hazing issues within its athletic programs, such as a 2020 baseball team hazing incident that led to multiple suspensions.

For a hazing incident at any of these schools, the legal pathway would involve local law enforcement (campus and city police), the university’s disciplinary process, and potentially civil litigation in the county where the school is located or where defendants reside. Our firm’s presence in Houston, Austin, and Beaumont allows us to navigate these venues effectively.

Building a Unbeatable Case: Evidence, Strategy, and Damages

When your family is in crisis, you need a law firm that knows how to build a case that wins, both in settlement negotiations and, if necessary, at trial. Our approach is methodical, aggressive, and informed by over 25 years of complex litigation experience.

Critical Evidence in the Digital Age

The evidence that wins modern hazing cases is often digital and ephemeral. We move swiftly to secure:

• Group Chats (GroupMe, WhatsApp, iMessage): The #1 source of evidence, showing planning, threats, boasts, and cover-up attempts. We work with digital forensics experts to recover deleted messages.
• Social Media (Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok): Photos, videos, and stories that document injuries, humiliation, or events. Location tags and timestamps are crucial.
• Internal Chapter Documents: Pledge manuals, “tradition” lists, and emails that reveal institutional knowledge of hazing practices.
• University Records: Prior conduct violations for the same organization, obtained through discovery or public records requests. This establishes a pattern of known risk.
• Medical Records: Documentation from ER visits, hospitalizations, and follow-up care that directly links physical and psychological injuries to the hazing events. In the Bermudez case, the lab results confirming rhabdomyolysis and acute kidney injury were definitive.

We have a detailed video on how to use your phone to document evidence properly. The key is to act fast before evidence is destroyed.

Overcoming Institutional Defenses

Fraternities, sororities, and universities have sophisticated defense playbooks. We know them intimately. Here’s how we counter common defenses:

• “The Pledge Consented”: We cite Texas law §37.155 and use evidence of coercion, power imbalance, and threats to show consent was not voluntary.
• “It Was a Rogue Chapter / We Didn’t Know”: We use our Texas Hazing Intelligence Engine to subpoena national records, proving prior incidents at other chapters that put the national headquarters on notice. Pattern evidence is devastating.
• “It Happened Off-Campus”: We argue foreseeability and negligent supervision. Organizations that control membership and culture cannot hide behind geography.
• “We Have Anti-Hazing Policies”: We expose the gap between paper policies and real-world enforcement, showing a history of minimal punishment for prior violations.

Our insider advantage is pivotal. Mr. Lupe Peña, our associate attorney, spent years as an insurance defense attorney for a national firm. His background means he knows exactly how fraternity and university insurance companies value claims, deploy delay tactics, and fight coverage. We don’t just react to their strategies; we anticipate them.

Recoverable Damages for Farmers Branch Families

A civil lawsuit seeks to make the victim whole and hold wrongdoers accountable. Recoverable damages can include:

• Economic Damages: All past and future medical expenses (ER, hospital, surgery, therapy, medications), lost wages (for parents or the student), and diminished future earning capacity if injuries are permanent.
• Non-Economic Damages: Compensation for physical pain, emotional distress, humiliation, PTSD, anxiety, depression, and loss of enjoyment of life.
• Wrongful Death Damages (if applicable): Funeral costs, loss of financial support, and the profound loss of love, companionship, and guidance for parents and siblings.
• Punitive Damages: In cases of particularly egregious or reckless conduct, courts may award additional damages to punish the defendants and deter future behavior.

We work with life-care planners, economists, and medical experts to build a comprehensive picture of the lifelong impact of a hazing injury. We don’t settle for quick, lowball offers. We build cases that demand full accountability.

A Practical Action Guide for Farmers Branch Parents and Students

For Parents: Warning Signs and Immediate Steps

If You Suspect Hazing:

1. Prioritize Safety & Medical Care: If your child is injured or severely intoxicated, call 911 immediately. Get professional medical evaluation; internal injuries like rhabdomyolysis may not be immediately apparent.
2. Document Everything: Write down what your child tells you with dates and names. Take photos of any visible injuries. If they show you texts or social media posts, take screenshots immediately.
3. Preserve Digital Evidence: Advise your child NOT to delete any messages, photos, or group chats, even if they are embarrassing. This evidence is critical.
4. Seek Legal Counsel Early: Contact an experienced hazing attorney before reporting to the university or confronting the organization. We can help you navigate the process, protect evidence, and avoid critical mistakes. Call us at 1-888-ATTY-911.
5. Understand University Reporting: You can report to the Dean of Students or campus police, but be aware that the university’s primary interest may be limiting its own liability. Have an attorney guide this communication.

For Students: Your Rights and Safety

• You Have the Right to Be Safe: No tradition is worth your life or health.
• Consent is Not a Defense in Texas: You cannot legally agree to be assaulted or endangered.
• Good-Faith Reporting is Protected: Texas law and most university policies offer amnesty to those who call for help in an emergency.
• How to Exit Safely: You can resign your pledge or membership at any time via email. Do not attend a “final meeting” where pressure or retaliation might occur. Tell a trusted adult, RA, or the Dean of Students if you fear retaliation.
• Collect Evidence Securely: Take screenshots, photos, and notes. Save them in a secure cloud account or email them to a trusted family member.

Critical Mistakes That Can Harm Your Case

We have a video dedicated to client mistakes that can ruin an injury case. In hazing cases, avoid these pitfalls:

• Deleting evidence to “make it go away.”
• Confronting the fraternity/sorority directly, which triggers their defense lawyers and evidence destruction.
• Signing university settlement offers without an attorney’s review.
• Posting details on public social media, which can be used against you.
• Waiting too long. Texas has a two-year statute of limitations for personal injury, but evidence and witness memories fade fast. Learn more about statutes of limitation here.

About The Manginello Law Firm / Attorney911: Why Texas Hazing Families Choose Us

When your family in Farmers Branch is facing a hazing crisis, you need a law firm with the specific expertise, resources, and tenacity to take on powerful institutions. We are not a general personal injury firm; we are Texas complex litigation specialists who have made hazing accountability a core practice.

Our Proven Advantage:

• Active, High-Stakes Litigation: We are not theorizing about hazing law; we are actively fighting one of the most severe cases in the state—the $10 million Bermudez lawsuit against UH and Pi Kappa Phi. This is your proof of our commitment and capability.
• Insurance Insider Knowledge: Mr. Lupe Peña’s background as a former insurance defense attorney is invaluable. He knows how the other side thinks, values claims, and fights. This insight is irreplaceable in securing full and fair compensation.
• Experience Against Billion-Dollar Defendants: Managing Partner Ralph Manginello was one of the few Texas attorneys involved in the BP Texas City explosion litigation. Taking on a national fraternity or a major university system does not intimidate us. Learn about Ralph’s background here.
• The Texas Hazing Intelligence Engine: Our data-driven investigative approach means we start your case with a deep map of the Texas Greek ecosystem. We identify all potentially liable parties from day one.
• Full-Service Capability: Our extensive experience in wrongful death and catastrophic injury cases means we know how to work with economists and life-care planners to value the true, long-term impact of an injury.
• Spanish-Language Services: Mr. Peña is fluent in Spanish (Se habla Español), ensuring we can serve all Texas families with comfort and clarity.

We operate on a contingency fee basis for personal injury cases, meaning you pay no attorney fees unless we win your case. See how contingency fees work.

Call to Action for Farmers Branch

If you are a parent, student, or witness in Farmers Branch, Carrollton, Addison, or anywhere in Dallas County grappling with the aftermath of hazing, you do not have to face this alone. The institutions involved will have lawyers protecting their interests from the very first moment. You deserve the same fierce advocacy.

Contact The Manginello Law Firm today for a free, confidential, and no-obligation consultation. We will listen to your story, review any evidence you have, explain your legal options under Texas law, and help you chart a path toward accountability, healing, and justice.

We are the Legal Emergency Lawyers™ for a reason. We provide immediate help.

Call 24/7: 1-888-ATTY-911 (1-888-288-9911)
Direct: (713) 528-9070 | Cell: (713) 443-4781
Website: https://attorney911.com
Email: ralph@atty911.com or lupe@atty911.com

Plain Text Links to Key Resources:

News Coverage of the Leonel Bermudez/UH Pi Kappa Phi Case:

• Click2Houston: https://www.click2houston.com/news/local/2025/11/21/only-on-2-lawsuit-alleges-severe-hazing-at-university-of-houstons-pi-kappa-phi-chapter-fraternity/
• ABC13: https://abc13.com/post/waterboarding-forced-eating-physical-punishment-lawsuit-alleges-abuse-faced-injured-pledge-uhs-pi-kappa-phi-fraternity/18186418/
• Hoodline: https://hoodline.com/2025/11/university-of-houston-and-pi-kappa-phi-fraternity-face-10m-lawsuit-over-alleged-hazing-and-abuse/

Attorney911 Educational Videos:

• Using Your Cellphone as Evidence: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LLbpzrmogTs
• Statute of Limitations in Texas: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MRHwg8tV02c
• Client Mistakes to Avoid: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r3IYsoxOSxY
• How Contingency Fees Work: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=upcI_j6F7Nc

Attorney911 Main Website & Profiles:

• Main Site & Contact: https://attorney911.com
• Ralph Manginello Profile: https://attorney911.com/attorneys/ralph-manginello/
• Lupe Peña Profile: https://attorney911.com/attorneys/lupe-pena/

Legal Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Reading this does not create an attorney-client relationship. Every case is unique, and outcomes depend on specific facts and law. If you need legal advice, please contact an attorney directly. The Manginello Law Firm, PLLC / Attorney911. Principal office in Houston, serving Texas.