Hazing Lawsuit Guide for Clarksville City, TX Families: University of Houston Pi Kappa Phi Case & Texas Law

If Your Child Was Hazed at a Texas University, You Are Not Alone

We understand the fear and confusion that strikes a family in Clarksville City when you get that call or see those texts. Maybe your student at LeTourneau University in nearby Longview suddenly seems withdrawn, exhausted, or is hiding injuries. Perhaps they’re hours away at the University of Houston, Texas A&M, or UT Austin, and the stories they’re telling—or refusing to tell—sound alarming. What you’re sensing is real: the line between “tradition” and abuse in campus organizations is often crossed, with devastating consequences.

Right now, we are fighting one of the most serious hazing cases in Texas history, representing Leonel Bermudez against the University of Houston and the Pi Kappa Phi fraternity. This active, $10 million lawsuit exposes the brutal reality of modern hazing. Our client, a UH student, endured forced humiliation, extreme physical abuse, and threats that led to rhabdomyolysis—severe muscle breakdown—and acute kidney failure. He was hospitalized for four days, passing brown urine, and faces ongoing risk of permanent damage. The hazing included a degrading “pledge fanny pack” rule, being sprayed in the face with a hose “similar to waterboarding,” forced overeating until vomiting, and brutal workouts at Yellowstone Boulevard Park. This is happening at major Texas universities, and Clarksville City families need to know the truth.

This guide is for you: parents and families in Clarksville City, Gregg County, and across East Texas. We will explain what hazing really looks like in 2025, your legal rights under Texas law, and how the patterns seen in national tragedies are repeating here. We’ll show you the data we use to hold organizations accountable and give you concrete steps to protect your child. You don’t have to navigate this crisis alone.

IMMEDIATE HELP FOR HAZING EMERGENCIES:

• If your child is in danger RIGHT NOW:
  • Call 911 for medical emergencies.
  • Then call Attorney911: 1-888-ATTY-911 (1-888-288-9911).
• In the first 48 hours:
  • Get medical attention immediately. Conditions like rhabdomyolysis are time-sensitive.
  • Preserve evidence BEFORE it’s deleted: Screenshot all group chats (GroupMe, WhatsApp), photograph injuries, save any physical items.
  • Write down everything your child tells you (who, what, when, where).
  • Do NOT: Confront the fraternity/sorority, sign anything from the university, or let your child delete messages.
• Contact an experienced hazing attorney: Evidence disappears fast. Call us at 1-888-ATTY-911 for an immediate, confidential consultation.

Hazing in 2025: It’s More Than “Just Partying”

Hazing is any intentional, knowing, or reckless act that endangers the mental or physical health of a student for the purpose of joining or maintaining membership in a group. It’s not just about alcohol; it’s about power, control, and coercion. In the UH Pi Kappa Phi case, hazing included:

• Psychological Coercion: A “pledge fanny pack” with humiliating items had to be carried 24/7. Strict dress codes, mandatory interview blocks, and overnight chauffeuring duties were enforced under threat of expulsion.
• Physical Torture: Sprints, bear crawls, “save-your-brother” drills in cold weather, lying in vomit-soaked grass, and the infamous Nov. 3 workout: 100+ push-ups and 500 squats under duress.
• Simulated Violence: Being sprayed in the face with a hose “similar to waterboarding,” with threats of actual waterboarding. Another pledge was hog-tied face-down on a table with an object in his mouth for over an hour.
• Forced Consumption: Pledges were made to drink milk and eat hot dogs and peppercorns until they vomited, then forced to immediately sprint.

This is the modern face of hazing: a mix of digital control, psychological warfare, and physical brutality designed to break down new members.

Texas Hazing Law: Your Legal Rights in Clarksville City and Beyond

Texas has strong anti-hazing laws under Chapter 37 of the Education Code. For Clarksville City families, this means:

• Criminal Penalties: Hazing is a crime. It’s a Class B misdemeanor, but becomes a state jail felony if it causes serious bodily injury or death—exactly what happened to Leonel Bermudez with his kidney failure.
• “Consent is NOT a Defense”: Texas law (§ 37.155) is clear: even if your child “agreed” to participate, it is not a legal defense against hazing charges. The power imbalance and coercion inherent in pledging negate true consent.
• Organizational Liability: The fraternity/sorority itself can be fined up to $10,000 and lose its campus recognition. In civil court, as we are showing in the UH case, the national headquarters, local housing corporations, and individual members can all be held financially liable.
• Good-Faith Reporting Protection: Individuals who report hazing or call for medical help in good faith have immunity from certain liabilities, encouraging life-saving intervention.

A civil lawsuit, separate from any criminal case, is how families seek compensation for medical bills, ongoing therapy, lost educational opportunities, and the profound pain and suffering caused. We use Texas law to build these cases.

The Flagship Case: Leonel Bermudez v. University of Houston & Pi Kappa Phi

This is not a historical example; this is our active litigation right now. We represent Leonel Bermudez. The defendants include:

• The University of Houston and UH System Board of Regents.
• Pi Kappa Phi National Fraternity Headquarters.
• The Pi Kappa Phi Beta Nu Housing Corporation.
• 13 individual fraternity leaders (chapter president, pledgemaster, risk manager, etc.).

The institutional response tells its own story: After reports surfaced, Pi Kappa Phi HQ suspended the chapter on Nov. 6, 2025. By Nov. 14, chapter members voted to surrender their charter, shutting down the Beta Nu chapter. UH called the alleged conduct “deeply disturbing” and promised cooperation with law enforcement. This rapid closure is a pattern—organizations act only when exposed by a lawsuit.

We urge you to read the detailed media coverage:

• Click2Houston report on UH Pi Kappa Phi hazing case
• ABC13 coverage of Leonel Bermudez’s UH hazing lawsuit

This case is the blueprint for how we fight for Texas families. We know how to investigate these organizations because we are doing it in real time.

The Texas Greek Ecosystem: What Clarksville City Families Are Up Against

Fraternities and sororities are not just social clubs; they are networks of legal entities with insurance policies, property holdings, and national structures. Through our Texas Hazing Intelligence Engine, we maintain a database of over 1,400 Greek-related organizations across Texas to trace liability. For families in Clarksville City and Gregg County, this includes organizations connected to nearby campuses and major state schools.

Public Records Directory: Greek Organizations Relevant to East Texas Families

The following are real entities recorded in IRS and state filings. This is the type of data we use to identify every potentially liable organization behind a hazing incident.

Local & Regional Connections:

• Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, EIN 364091267, Waco, TX 76710. A national sorority with chapters statewide.
• Alpha Sigma Phi Fraternity Inc., EIN 475370943, Houston, TX 77204. National fraternity with multiple Texas chapters.
• Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, EIN 237279532, Prairie View, TX 77446. A national fraternity with alumni and graduate chapters across Texas.
• Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi, EIN 263170920, Denton, TX 76204. Academic honor society with chapters at most Texas universities.
• Pi Kappa Alpha Fraternity, EIN 746064445, Nederland, TX 77627. The national fraternity involved in multiple hazing deaths.

Statewide University Hubs (Where Clarksville City Students Often Attend):

• Beta Nu Pi Kappa Phi Fraternity Housing Corporation Inc., EIN 462267515, Frisco, TX 75035. The housing corporation for the now-closed UH chapter.
• Texas Kappa Sigma Educational Foundation Inc., EIN 741380362, Fort Worth, TX 76147. A foundation supporting Kappa Sigma chapters in Texas.
• Gamma Phi Beta Sorority Inc., EIN 161675890, The Woodlands, TX 77382. National sorority with house corporation filings in Texas.
• Sigma Chi Fraternity Epsilon Xi Chapter, EIN 746084905, Houston, TX 77204. Chapter entity at the University of Houston.

This directory illustrates a critical point: when hazing occurs, there is often a web of corporations and national organizations behind the local chapter that may share liability. We know how to find them.

Where Clarksville City Families Send Their Kids: Campus Hazing Realities

Clarksville City students often pursue higher education at regional institutions and major state universities, each with its own Greek life landscape and hazing risks.

Local and Regional Campuses:

• LeTourneau University (Longview, TX – Gregg County): A private Christian university with student organizations. While its culture differs from large Greek systems, any group with initiation rituals can harbor hazing.
• University of Texas at Tyler (Smith County): A growing UT system school with expanding student life.
• Stephen F. Austin State University (Nacogdoches, TX): Has a traditional Greek life system with Interfraternity Council (IFC) and Panhellenic chapters.

Major Texas Universities (Common Destinations):

• University of Houston: As the Bermudez case proves, severe hazing persists despite policies. UH has multiple Greek councils with histories of disciplinary action.
• Texas A&M University: Home to a massive Greek system and the Corps of Cadets, which has faced its own high-profile hazing lawsuits alleging degrading physical and sexualized abuse.
• University of Texas at Austin: Maintains a public hazing violations log. Organizations like Pi Kappa Alpha have been sanctioned for forcing new members to consume milk and perform strenuous calisthenics.
• Texas Tech University: A major Greek life hub in Lubbock with dozens of chapters.

The geographic distance from Clarksville City does not diminish a family’s right to justice. These universities and their affiliated organizations can be held accountable in Texas courts.

Building a Hazing Case: Evidence, Strategy, and the Attorney911 Advantage

When you contact us, we immediately begin a strategic investigation. Our approach is informed by our active litigation in the UH case and our unique firm strengths.

1. Evidence Preservation is Everything:
We guide families to secure:

• Digital Evidence: Group chats (GroupMe, WhatsApp), text messages, social media posts, and location data. We work with digital forensics experts to recover deleted information. Watch our video on using your phone to document evidence.
• Medical Documentation: Complete records from ER visits, hospitalizations, and follow-up care. In Bermudez’s case, lab reports showing critically high creatine kinase levels were key.
• Witness Identification: Other pledges, former members, roommates, and bystanders.
• Institutional Records: We subpoena university conduct files and national fraternity risk management reports to prove prior knowledge and pattern of behavior.

2. Identifying All Liable Parties:
Using our Texas Hazing Intelligence Engine, we look beyond the individual members to sue:

• The national fraternity/sorority headquarters that sets policies and collects dues.
• The local housing corporation (like the Beta Nu corporation) that owns or controls the property.
• The university for negligent supervision and failure to protect students.
• Individual ringleaders who planned and executed the abuse.

3. Overcoming Defense Tactics:
We expect and counter common defenses:

• “They Consented”: We cite Texas law where consent is no defense and demonstrate the coercive environment.
• “Rogue Chapter”: We use national hazing histories (like Pi Kappa Phi’s past fatalities) to show foreseeable risk and negligent oversight by nationals.
• “Insurance Doesn’t Cover This”: Our attorney, Mr. Lupe Peña, spent years as an insurance defense lawyer. He knows how these companies fight claims and how to defeat coverage arguments.

Why Choose Attorney911? Texas-Based Hazing Specialists for Clarksville City Families

We are not a generic personal injury firm. We are complex litigation specialists with a proven track record against the biggest institutional defendants.

• Insider Insurance Knowledge: Mr. Lupe Peña (he/him) is a former insurance defense attorney for a national firm. He knows exactly how fraternity and university insurers value claims, deploy delay tactics, and argue exclusions. This insider knowledge is invaluable. Learn more about Mr. Peña’s background.
• Proven Against Giants: Managing Partner Ralph Manginello was one of the few Texas lawyers involved in the BP Texas City explosion litigation. We are not intimidated by billion-dollar corporations or wealthy national fraternities.
• Active in the Fight: We are not theorizing about hazing lawsuits; we are leading one of the most significant cases in the state right now with the Bermudez v. UH litigation.
• Deep Texas Roots: We understand Texas families, Texas courts, and Texas law. We serve clients statewide from our offices in Houston, Austin, and Beaumont.
• Comprehensive Investigation: We deploy a network of experts—medical professionals, economists, digital forensics specialists, and life-care planners—to build an undeniable case.
• Spanish-Language Services: Mr. Peña speaks fluent Spanish. We are committed to serving all Texas families.

We work on a contingency fee basis: you pay nothing unless we recover money for you. Watch our video explaining how contingency fees work.

Practical Steps for Clarksville City Parents & Students

What to Do RIGHT NOW if You Suspect Hazing:

1. Prioritize Safety & Health: If there is any sign of injury, intoxication, or distress, seek medical care immediately. Conditions like alcohol poisoning, rhabdomyolysis, or internal injuries can be fatal.
2. Document Everything:
   • Screenshot all relevant group chats, texts, and social media posts.
   • Photograph any injuries, bruises, or scenes.
   • Write down a timeline with names, dates, locations, and specific acts.
   • Save physical evidence (torn clothing, paddles, bottles).
3. Report Strategically: You can report to campus police, the Dean of Students, and local law enforcement. However, be aware that universities often launch internal investigations aimed at limiting liability. Consult with an attorney first to protect your rights.
4. Call Attorney911 at 1-888-ATTY-911. We will provide immediate guidance on evidence preservation, explain your legal options, and help you navigate the next steps without pressure.

Critical Mistakes to Avoid:

• Do NOT let your child delete messages or “clean up” their phone.
• Do NOT confront the fraternity/sorority members directly. This triggers evidence destruction and witness coaching.
• Do NOT sign any documents from the university or an insurance adjuster without an attorney’s review.
• Do NOT post details on social media. Let us control the legal narrative.
• Do NOT wait. Evidence vanishes, witnesses scatter, and statutes of limitations apply. Watch our video on client mistakes that can ruin a case.

Contact Attorney911 for a Free, Confidential Consultation

To the parents in Clarksville City, Longview, Kilgore, and across East Texas: the nightmare of hazing is real, but you have powerful allies. The same institutions that failed to protect Leonel Bermudez at UH may be failing students across the state. You have the right to answers, accountability, and justice.

We offer a no-cost, confidential case evaluation. We will listen to your story, review the evidence you have, and explain your legal options under Texas law. There is no obligation to hire us.

Call the Legal Emergency Lawyers™ today: 1-888-ATTY-911 (1-888-288-9911). You can also visit our website at https://attorney911.com or email Ralph Manginello directly at ralph@atty911.com.

Se habla Español. Contact Mr. Lupe Peña at lupe@atty911.com for consultation in Spanish.

We are here to help your family through this crisis and fight to ensure no other student suffers as our client did.

Plain Text Links to Key Resources:

News Coverage of the 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 to Document Evidence: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LLbpzrmogTs
• Texas Statutes of Limitations: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MRHwg8tV02c
• Client Mistakes That Can Ruin Your Case: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r3IYsoxOSxY
• How Contingency Fees Work: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=upcI_j6F7Nc

Attorney911 Website:

• Main Site & Contact: https://attorney911.com

Legal Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Every case is fact-specific. Consulting with an attorney is the best way to understand your rights. Contact Attorney911 at 1-888-ATTY-911 for a confidential consultation regarding your specific situation.