A Hazing Litigation Guide for Omaha, Texas Parents: Protecting Your Child at Texas Universities and Beyond

If Your Child Is in Danger Now – Immediate Help

Call 911 first for any medical emergency. Then call us.

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In the First 48 Hours:

• Get Medical Attention Immediately: Even if your child insists they are “fine,” emergency evaluation is critical for conditions like rhabdomyolysis (severe muscle breakdown) or alcohol poisoning.
• Preserve Evidence BEFORE It’s Deleted: Screenshot all group chats (GroupMe, texts, DMs), photograph injuries from multiple angles, save any physical items.
• Write Down Everything: Who, what, when, and where, while memories are fresh.
• Do NOT:
  • Confront the fraternity, sorority, or university directly.
  • Let your child delete messages or “clean up” their phone.
  • Sign anything from a university or insurance company.
  • Post details on public social media.

If you are a parent in Omaha, Texas, in Morris County, your worst nightmare may begin with a late-night phone call, a text saying “I’m okay,” that doesn’t sound right, or a sudden trip to a distant hospital. Hazing—the violent, coercive, and degrading abuse masked as “tradition” or “bonding”—is not a relic of the past. It is happening right now on Texas campuses, and families in our community are not immune.

Consider a scene unfolding this semester: a University of Houston pledge from a family just like yours is forced through hundreds of squats and push-ups until he collapses. He’s sprayed in the face with a hose “like waterboarding,” forced to eat until he vomits, and made to carry a humiliating “pledge fanny pack” everywhere. Days later, he’s in the hospital with brown urine, diagnosed with acute kidney failure and rhabdomyolysis—a catastrophic muscular breakdown. This is not a hypothetical. This is the real, ongoing case of Leonel Bermudez at the University of Houston’s Pi Kappa Phi Beta Nu chapter, a $10 million lawsuit our firm is actively litigating right now.

This guide is for you—the parents and families of Omaha and all of Morris County. We will explain what modern hazing truly looks like, the Texas laws designed to protect your child, and the sobering national patterns that repeat on our home-state campuses. We’ll focus on the universities where Omaha families often send their children: the University of Houston, Texas A&M, UT Austin, SMU, Baylor, and other regional schools. Our goal is to arm you with knowledge, show you the path to accountability, and explain why our firm, with our deep Texas roots and unique investigative engine, is built to help families like yours through this crisis.

Hazing in 2025: Beyond the Stereotypes

Hazing is no longer just about silly pranks or excessive partying. It is a calculated system of power, control, and abuse that endangers mental and physical health. Texas law (Education Code Chapter 37) defines it broadly: any intentional, knowing, or reckless act that endangers a student’s physical or mental health for the purpose of initiation, affiliation, or membership. Crucially, the victim’s “consent” is not a defense.

Modern hazing tactics have evolved into several dangerous categories:

Alcohol & Substance Hazing: This remains the deadliest pattern. It includes forced chugging, “Big/Little” nights with handles of liquor, drinking games like “Bible study” where wrong answers mandate consumption, and coerced use of drugs. The national fatalities—Stone Foltz (Pi Kappa Alpha), Max Gruver (Phi Delta Theta), Andrew Coffey (Pi Kappa Phi)—all followed this script. In Texas, we see the same: the UH Pi Kappa Phi case involved forced consumption of milk, hot dogs, and peppercorns until vomiting.

Physical & “Ritualized” Hazing: This includes extreme calisthenics (“smokings”), paddling, beatings, sleep and food deprivation, exposure to extreme elements, and dangerous “traditions.” The case of Chun “Michael” Deng, killed during a blindfolded “glass ceiling” ritual with Pi Delta Psi, is a horrific example. In Texas, we’ve seen lawsuits alleging chemical burns from industrial cleaner at Texas A&M and binding in “roasted pig” positions in the Corps of Cadets.

Sexualized & Humiliating Hazing: Forced nudity, simulated sexual acts, degrading costumes, and racially or sexually charged abuse. These acts cause profound psychological trauma and can trigger Title IX investigations alongside civil claims.

Digital Hazing & Coercion: This is the 24/7 control mechanism. Pledges are monitored via group chats (GroupMe, WhatsApp), required to share live locations, forced to post humiliating content on social media, and subjected to constant demands that disrupt sleep and academics. Digital evidence—messages planning events, boasting about abuse, or coaching silence—is now the cornerstone of successful litigation.

Hazing occurs in fraternities, sororities, Corps of Cadets programs, athletic teams (like the Northwestern football scandal), spirit groups, marching bands, and other campus organizations. It thrives on secrecy, tradition, and the immense social pressure to belong.

The Texas Legal Framework: Criminal Penalties and Civil Rights

Understanding the law is your first step toward accountability. Texas has specific statutes and federal laws overlay to create multiple avenues for justice.

Texas Hazing Law (Education Code Chapter 37):

• Definition: An intentional, knowing, or reckless act that endangers physical/mental health for purposes of initiation or affiliation, on or off campus.
• Criminal Penalties:
  • 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.
  • It is also a crime for an officer/member to fail to report hazing or to retaliate against a reporter.
• Key Protections: Consent is NOT a defense (§37.155). Good-faith reporters who seek medical help have immunity protections (§37.154).

Civil Liability: The Path to Compensation and Accountability
A criminal case, brought by the state, seeks punishment. A civil case, which we handle, is brought by the victim and family to recover damages and force institutional change. They can proceed simultaneously. Potentially liable parties include:

• The individual students who planned, executed, or covered up the abuse.
• The local chapter as an organization.
• The national fraternity/sorority headquarters that may have known of risks but failed to act.
• The university (for negligent supervision, Title IX violations, or deliberate indifference).
• Third parties like property owners or alcohol providers.

Federal Law Overlays:

• Title IX: If hazing involves sexual harassment or gender-based hostility, universities have a legal duty to respond promptly and effectively.
• The Clery Act: Requires universities to report certain crimes, including assaults that often accompany hazing.
• The Stop Campus Hazing Act (2024): Requires increased transparency and public reporting of hazing incidents by universities receiving federal funds.

National Case Patterns: The Tragic Playbook Texas Chapters Follow

The devastating hazing cases that make national headlines are not random. They reveal a repeating playbook that certain national organizations have failed to rewrite. This “pattern evidence” is critical in court, showing that tragedies were foreseeable and preventable.

The Alcohol Poisoning Death Pattern:

• Timothy Piazza (Penn State, Beta Theta Pi, 2017): A bid-acceptance night of excessive drinking, horrific falls caught on house cameras, and a deadly delay in calling 911. Resulted in the Timothy J. Piazza Anti-Hazing Law in Pennsylvania.
• Max Gruver (LSU, Phi Delta Theta, 2017): A “Bible study” drinking game led to a fatal 0.495% BAC. The Max Gruver Act made hazing a felony in Louisiana.
• Stone Foltz (Bowling Green, Pi Kappa Alpha, 2021): A pledge forced to drink a bottle of whiskey. A $10 million settlement followed, with the chapter president held personally liable for $6.5 million.

The Physical & Ritualized Violence Pattern:

• Chun “Michael” Deng (Baruch College, Pi Delta Psi, 2013): Killed during a violent, blindfolded “glass ceiling” ritual at a retreat. The national fraternity was criminally convicted and banned from Pennsylvania for 10 years.

The Institutional Failure Pattern:

• Northwestern University Football (2023-2025): Widespread sexualized and racist hazing allegations showed systemic abuse in a major athletic program, leading to lawsuits and confidential settlements.

For an Omaha parent, these stories are a warning: the same national fraternities implicated in these deaths and injuries—Pi Kappa Alpha, Sigma Alpha Epsilon, Phi Delta Theta, Pi Kappa Phi—have active chapters at Texas universities. Their national headquarters cannot claim ignorance when the same deadly patterns emerge in our state.

Texas University Focus: Where Omaha Families Send Their Kids

Omaha families have deep ties to Texas higher education. Students from Morris County attend a wide range of institutions, from local colleges to major flagship universities. Understanding the hazing landscape at these schools is critical.

The University of Houston & The Flagship Case

The University of Houston is a major destination for Texas students and is currently at the center of one of the most severe hazing cases in the country—a case our firm is litigating.

The Leonel Bermudez / Pi Kappa Phi Beta Nu Case:
In late 2025, we filed a $10 million lawsuit on behalf of Leonel Bermudez, a UH student who suffered catastrophic injuries during his Pi Kappa Phi pledge period. The allegations, detailed in media reports from Click2Houston and ABC13, include:

• The humiliating “pledge fanny pack” rule.
• Being sprayed in the face with a hose “similar to waterboarding.”
• Forced consumption of milk, hot dogs, and peppercorns until vomiting, followed by immediate sprints.
• A November 3 “workout” of 100+ push-ups and 500 squats under threat of expulsion.
• The result: rhabdomyolysis and acute kidney failure, brown urine, a four-day hospitalization, and risk of permanent kidney damage.

The lawsuit names 17 defendants: the University of Houston, the UH System Board of Regents, Pi Kappa Phi’s national headquarters, the chapter housing corporation, and 13 individual fraternity leaders. After the hazing was reported, Pi Kappa Phi nationals suspended the chapter on November 6, 2025, and members voted to surrender their charter on November 14. UH called the conduct “deeply disturbing.” This case is live proof of the severe, ongoing hazing problem at Texas schools and the complex institutional fight required to secure justice.

Texas A&M University & The Corps of Cadets

For generations, Texas A&M in College Station has been a proud tradition for many Texas families. Its unique Corps of Cadets culture and robust Greek life also present specific hazing risks.

Recent Incidents & Litigation:

• Sigma Alpha Epsilon (SAE) Chemical Burns Case (2021): Two pledges sued the fraternity, alleging they were doused with substances including industrial-strength cleaner, causing severe chemical burns requiring skin graft surgeries. They sought $1 million in damages.
• Corps of Cadets “Roasted Pig” Lawsuit (2023): A cadet alleged degrading hazing, including being bound between beds in a simulated sexual position with an apple in his mouth. The lawsuit sought over $1 million, highlighting that hazing extends beyond Greek life into the Corps’ tradition-heavy culture.

What Omaha Parents Should Know:
A&M’s size and tradition can make reporting intimidating. Hazing may be disguised as “disciplinary training” in the Corps or “team building” in fraternities. Evidence preservation is paramount, and cases often require confronting both the student organization and the university’s powerful institutional identity.

The University of Texas at Austin

UT Austin boasts one of the most transparent hazing reporting systems in the state through its public violations log. This transparency itself reveals an ongoing problem.

Documented Violations from UT’s Public Log:

• Pi Kappa Alpha (2023): New members directed to consume milk and perform strenuous calisthenics. Sanction: Probation and mandatory hazing prevention education.
• Texas Wranglers (Spirit Group): Multiple sanctions for alcohol-related hazing and forced activities.
• Sigma Alpha Epsilon (SAE): Faced a lawsuit from an Australian exchange student in 2024 alleging a brutal assault at a party that resulted in a broken nose, fractured tibia, and dislocated leg.

Implications for Accountability: UT’s public log is a double-edged sword. For the university, it shows enforcement. For victims, it provides powerful pattern evidence. If a chapter is on probation for hazing and another incident occurs, it strongly suggests negligent supervision by both the national organization and the university.

Southern Methodist University & Baylor University

These prominent private universities have significant Greek life and their own hazing challenges, often with less public reporting due to their private status.

At SMU, past incidents include the Kappa Alpha Order chapter suspension in 2017 for paddling, forced drinking, and sleep deprivation. SMU uses tools like the “Real Response” anonymous reporting system.

At Baylor, a 2020 hazing incident led to the suspension of 14 baseball players. Baylor’s history with institutional response to crisis (the football sexual assault scandal) informs how it may handle hazing allegations.

For Omaha Families: Pursuing claims against private universities involves different dynamics than public ones, but the core legal principles of negligence and duty of care remain. Discovery—the legal process to obtain internal documents—is often where the truth is uncovered.

The Texas Hazing Intelligence Engine: Mapping the Organizations Behind the Letters

When your child is harmed, you need to know who is truly responsible. National fraternities and sororities are not monoliths; they are networks of legal entities. Our firm maintains a proprietary Texas Hazing Intelligence Engine, built from public records, to map this landscape. This means we don’t start from zero—we already know the players.

The Data Backbone:
Our engine compiles data from IRS filings (B83 tax-exempt organizations), Texas university registries, and commercial databases, tracking over 1,423 Greek-related organizations across 25 Texas metros. For Omaha families, this means we understand the ecosystem surrounding schools like UH, A&M, and UT.

A Sample of Texas Greek Organizations (From Public IRS B83 Filings):

• Beta Nu Pi Kappa Phi Fraternity Housing Corporation Inc., EIN 46-2267515, Frisco, TX 75035
• Kappa Sigma – Mu Camma Chapter Inc., EIN 13-3048786, College Station, TX 77845
• Texas Kappa Sigma Educational Foundation Inc., EIN 74-1380362, Fort Worth, TX 76147
• Pi Kappa Alpha Fraternity – Epsilon Kappa Chapter, EIN 74-6064445, Nederland, TX 77627
• Sigma Chi Fraternity Epsilon Xi Chapter, EIN 74-6084905, Houston, TX 77204
• Alpha Sigma Phi Fraternity Inc., EIN 47-5370943, Houston, TX 77204 (Theta Delta Chapter)

Why This Data Matters for Your Case:
This intelligence allows us to immediately identify all potentially liable entities: the local chapter corporation, the alumni housing board, the national headquarters, and related foundations. This is crucial for piercing insurance coverage and ensuring every responsible party is held accountable, just as we did in the UH Pi Kappa Phi case, suing the national organization, the local housing corporation, the university, and individual members.

Building a Hazing Case: Evidence, Strategy, and Damages

Winning a hazing case requires a meticulous, aggressive investigation that anticipates the defenses wealthy institutions will mount. This is where our specific expertise makes the difference.

Critical Evidence Collection:

• Digital Forensics: Recovering deleted group chats (GroupMe, WhatsApp), social media messages, location data, and planning communications. We know how to preserve this evidence before it vanishes. Our video on using your phone to document evidence outlines crucial first steps.
• Medical Nexus: Comprehensive records linking the hazing acts directly to the injuries—ER reports, toxicology, diagnoses like rhabdomyolysis, and psychological evaluations for PTSD.
• Pattern Evidence: Obtaining prior incident reports from the university and the national fraternity to prove they knew of the risk but failed to act.
• Witness Testimony: Securing statements from other pledges, former members, and bystanders before they are pressured into silence.

Overcoming Institutional Defenses:
We expect and counter defenses like:

• “The Pledge Consented”: We use Texas law (§37.155) and evidence of coercion to nullify this.
• “It Was a Rogue Chapter”: We subpoena national headquarters records to show prior knowledge and a pattern of similar incidents across the country.
• “Insurance Doesn’t Cover Intentional Acts”: With Mr. Lupe Peña’s background as a former insurance defense attorney, we know how to negotiate coverage and argue for negligent supervision, which is often covered.

Damages: What Families Can Recover
The goal is to make the victim whole and force change. Recoverable damages include:

• Economic Damages: All past and future medical expenses, lost wages, diminished earning capacity, and educational costs.
• Non-Economic Damages: Compensation for physical pain, emotional distress, trauma, humiliation, and loss of enjoyment of life.
• Wrongful Death Damages (if applicable): Funeral costs, loss of financial support, and the family’s grief and loss of companionship.
• Punitive Damages: In egregious cases, to punish the defendants and deter future conduct. Our track record includes multi-million dollar settlements in catastrophic injury and wrongful death cases.

A Practical Guide for Omaha Parents and Students

For Parents – Warning Signs & Immediate Actions:

1. Listen and Observe: Sudden secrecy, extreme fatigue, unexplained injuries, personality changes, financial stress, and obsessive phone monitoring can be red flags.
2. Have the Conversation: Ask open-ended questions: “Is anything making you uncomfortable in your new member process?” “Are you able to sleep and keep up with your classes?”
3. In a Crisis: Prioritize medical care. Then, help your child preserve evidence: screenshot messages, photograph injuries, save clothing. Do not let them delete anything.
4. Document Everything: Write down what your child tells you, with dates and names.
5. Seek Legal Counsel Early: Before reporting to the university or police, consult with an experienced hazing attorney. Universities often have their own interests to protect. We can guide you on how to report while protecting your child’s rights and evidence.

For Students – Your Safety and Rights:

• Trust Your Instincts: If it feels dangerous, humiliating, or coercive, it is hazing.
• You Have the Right to Leave: No matter what they say, you can de-pledge at any time. Your safety is more important than any organization.
• Preserve Evidence Silently: Take screenshots, photos, and notes.
• Know Your Reporting Options: You can report to the Dean of Students, campus police, anonymously through hotlines, or to us. Texas law offers protections for good-faith reporters.

Critical Mistakes That Can Harm a Case:
We detail common pitfalls in our video on client mistakes. Key errors include: deleting evidence, confronting the organization directly, signing university settlement offers without legal review, posting on social media, and waiting too long to act. Texas has a two-year statute of limitations for most personal injury claims, but evidence disappears in days. Learn more about statutes of limitations here.

Why Attorney911? Texas-Based Hazing Litigators with a National Case

At The Manginello Law Firm, PLLC (Attorney911), we are not just personal injury lawyers. We are institutional liability specialists with a proven track record in the most complex cases, and we are currently fighting one of Texas’s most significant hazing lawsuits.

Our Qualifications for Your Hazing Case:

1. Active, High-Stakes Hazing Litigation: We are lead counsel in the Leonel Bermudez v. University of Houston & Pi Kappa Phi case. We are in the fight right now, against a major university and a national fraternity. We know the playbook.
2. Insider Insurance Knowledge: Our attorney, Mr. Lupe Peña (he/him), spent years as an insurance defense attorney for a national firm. He knows exactly how fraternity and university insurers will try to deny, delay, and undervalue your claim. We use their tactics against them. Learn about Mr. Peña’s background.
3. Experience Against Billion-Dollar Defendants: Managing Partner Ralph Manginello was one of the few Texas lawyers involved in the BP Texas City Explosion litigation. We are not intimidated by universities or national organizations with deep pockets and aggressive defense teams. Learn about Ralph’s experience.
4. The Texas Hazing Intelligence Engine: We invest in data-driven investigation. Our proprietary directory of Texas Greek organizations means we can immediately identify all liable parties and their insurance coverage.
5. Full-Service Investigation: We have a network of medical experts, psychologists, digital forensics specialists, and economists to build an undeniable case from day one.
6. Spanish-Language Services: Mr. Peña speaks fluent Spanish (Se habla Español), ensuring we can serve all Texas families with comfort and clarity.
7. Contingency Fee Basis: We work on a contingency fee—you pay no upfront costs, and our fee is a percentage of the recovery we secure for you. See how contingency fees work.

A Final Message to Omaha, Texas Families

Hazing shatters lives and families. If you are in Omaha, Naples, Daingerfield, or anywhere in Morris County and suspect your child has been victimized, you do not have to face this alone. The institutions involved will have lawyers; you deserve expert advocates who fight for you with equal ferocity and greater purpose.

We offer a compassionate, confidential, and free consultation to listen to your story, review your evidence, and explain your legal options. We serve families across Texas from our offices in Houston, Austin, and Beaumont.

Contact us today. Let us help you secure justice, obtain the resources needed for healing, and work to ensure no other family endures this pain.

Attorney911 – The Legal Emergency Lawyers™
24/7 Free Consultation
Call: 1-888-ATTY-911 (1-888-288-9911)
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Email: ralph@atty911.com or lupe@atty911.com

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 fact-specific. Please contact an attorney for advice on your particular situation. The outcome of any case depends on the specific facts, applicable law, and many other factors. No guarantee of a similar result is implied.