A Guide for Amherst, Texas Families: Understanding Hazing, Holding Universities & Fraternities Accountable, and Protecting Your Child

When you send your child off to college from our quiet community in Amherst, you envision them gaining an education, building lifelong friendships, and finding their place in the world. You don’t imagine a phone call in the middle of the night, a frantic drive to a distant hospital, or the heartbreaking sight of your child suffering from injuries inflicted by people they trusted. For families in Lamb County and across the Texas Panhandle, the nightmare of campus hazing is a real and present danger, one that transcends the boundaries of any single campus.

Right now, we are leading one of the most serious hazing litigations in the country—right here in Texas. We represent Leonel Bermudez in a $10 million lawsuit against the University of Houston, the Pi Kappa Phi national fraternity, its Beta Nu chapter housing corporation, and 13 individual fraternity leaders. The alleged hazing—which included forced consumption of food until vomiting, extreme physical workouts, humiliation with a “pledge fanny pack,” and being sprayed in the face with a hose “similar to waterboarding”—left Bermudez with rhabdomyolysis and acute kidney failure, requiring a four-day hospitalization. This case is not an isolated event; it is a stark warning of what can happen when traditions turn toxic and institutions fail in their duty to protect students.

This guide is for you—the parents, grandparents, and families in Amherst, Littlefield, Earth, and across Lamb County. Whether your child attends Texas Tech University in Lubbock, West Texas A&M in Canyon, Wayland Baptist in Plainview, or any other Texas campus, you deserve to know the truth about hazing: what it looks like in 2025, what the law says, and how to fight for accountability and justice for your family.

If This Just Happened: Immediate Steps for Amherst Families

If your child is in danger RIGHT NOW:

• Call 911 for medical emergencies.
• Then call us at 1-888-ATTY-911. We are the Legal Emergency Lawyers™ for a reason.

In the first 48 hours:

1. Get Medical Care: Go to the ER or urgent care immediately. Document everything. For families in the Panhandle, this might mean Covenant Health in Lubbock or the local hospital in Plainview.
2. Preserve Evidence BEFORE It Disappears:
   • Screenshot every group chat (GroupMe, WhatsApp, iMessage, Snapchat).
   • Photograph injuries from multiple angles.
   • Save physical items (torn clothing, paddles, receipts for alcohol).
   • Write down everything your child tells you—names, dates, locations, specifics.
3. Do NOT:
   • Confront the fraternity, sorority, or team.
   • Let your child delete messages or “clean up” their phone.
   • Sign anything from the university or an insurance adjuster.
   • Post details on public social media.

Contact an experienced hazing attorney. Evidence vanishes quickly, especially digital evidence. Universities and national organizations have legal teams that move fast to control the narrative. We help families in Amherst and across Texas preserve evidence, understand their rights, and build a case for accountability. Call us at 1-888-ATTY-911 for a free, confidential consultation.

Hazing in 2025: What It Really Looks Like in Texas

Hazing is no longer just about roughhousing or silly pranks. It is a calculated pattern of abuse designed to assert power, enforce loyalty, and break down individuality. For Texas students, especially those from close-knit communities like Amherst who value trust and camaraderie, the psychological pressure to comply can be overwhelming.

Modern hazing typically falls into three escalating categories:

1. Subtle Hazing: Behaviors that emphasize power imbalance and set the stage for worse abuse.

• Mandatory servitude: Being on call 24/7 as a designated driver, cleaning members’ houses or apartments, running personal errands.
• Social isolation: Being cut off from non-member friends, required to seek permission for social plans.
• “Always-on” digital control: Required to monitor and respond instantly to group chats at all hours, share live location via apps.

2. Harassment Hazing: Behaviors that cause emotional or physical discomfort, creating a hostile environment.

• Sleep deprivation: Late-night “study sessions” or mandatory 3 AM wake-up calls.
• Verbal abuse and humiliation: Yelling, insults, degrading nicknames, being “grilled” or “roasted” by members.
• Forced consumption: Eating excessive amounts of bland food (like milk or hot dogs), consuming hot sauce or other unpleasant substances.
• Extreme, punitive calisthenics: “Smokings” with hundreds of push-ups, wall-sits until collapse, sprinting until vomiting.

3. Violent Hazing: Activities with a high potential for serious injury, sexual assault, or death.

• Forced/coerced alcohol consumption: “Big/Little” nights with handles of liquor, drinking games where wrong answers mandate drinks, lineups where pledges must chug.
• Physical beatings: Paddling, punching, kicking.
• Sexualized hazing: Forced nudity, simulated sexual acts (“elephant walks”), sexual assault.
• Dangerous physical tests: Blindfolded tackles (“glass ceiling” rituals), forced fights, exposure to extreme cold.

The Common Thread: Each of these acts is tied to initiation, affiliation, or maintaining membership in a group. The excuse of “tradition” or “building brotherhood/sisterhood” is legally irrelevant. Under Texas law, if the activity endangers a student’s physical or mental health for the purpose of joining a group, it is hazing.

Texas & Federal Hazing Law: The Legal Framework for Accountability

Understanding the law is the first step toward holding people accountable. For Amherst families, Texas law governs any hazing incident connected to a Texas school.

Texas Education Code, Chapter 37: The Anti-Hazing Statute

Texas has a specific, powerful law against hazing (Texas Educ. Code §§ 37.151 – 37.157). Key provisions every parent should know:

• Broad Definition: Hazing is any intentional, knowing, or reckless act directed against a student for the purpose of initiation into, affiliation with, or maintaining membership in an organization that endangers the mental or physical health or safety of the student. This applies on or off campus.
• Consent is NOT a Defense (§ 37.155): This is critical. It does not matter if your child “agreed” to participate. The law recognizes that power dynamics, peer pressure, and fear of exclusion negate true consent. A fraternity cannot escape liability by claiming, “He wanted to do it.”
• Criminal Penalties (§ 37.152):
  • Class B Misdemeanor: Basic hazing (up to 180 days jail, $2,000 fine).
  • Class A Misdemeanor: Hazing that causes bodily injury.
  • State Jail Felony: Hazing that causes serious bodily injury or death.
  • It is also a crime for an officer or member to fail to report hazing they are aware of.
• Organizational Liability (§ 37.153): The fraternity, sorority, or club itself can be prosecuted and fined up to $10,000 if it authorized or encouraged the hazing.
• Immunity for Reporting (§ 37.154): A person who in good faith reports hazing is immune from civil or criminal liability for the report itself. Many universities also have medical amnesty policies to encourage calling 911.

Civil Liability: The Path to Justice and Compensation

A criminal case, handled by the state, aims to punish. A civil lawsuit, which we file on behalf of victims and families, aims to provide compensation for harms and losses, and to force institutional change. They can proceed simultaneously.

In a civil hazing case, we can seek damages from multiple defendants:

• The individuals who planned, perpetrated, or concealed the hazing.
• The local chapter as an organization.
• The national fraternity/sorority headquarters for negligent supervision, failure to enforce policies, and prior knowledge of dangerous patterns.
• The university for negligent supervision, deliberate indifference to a known risk, or Title IX violations (if the hazing is sex-based).
• Third parties like landlords of off-campus houses or alcohol providers.

Federal Overlay: The Stop Campus Hazing Act & Title IX

• The Stop Campus Hazing Act (2024): This new federal law requires colleges receiving federal funds to publicly report hazing incidents and strengthen prevention programs. This will increase transparency for families researching campus safety.
• Title IX: If hazing involves sexual harassment or assault, it triggers the university’s Title IX obligations to investigate and provide a safe educational environment.

A National Crisis, A Texas Reality: Lessons from Landmark Hazing Cases

The tragedy at the University of Houston is part of a national pattern. Understanding these cases shows that hazing deaths and injuries are foreseeable and preventable, which is central to proving negligence in court.

• Stone Foltz – Bowling Green State Univ., Pi Kappa Alpha (2021): A 20-year-old pledge died after being forced to drink an entire bottle of alcohol. His family secured a $10 million settlement ($7M from the national fraternity, ~$3M from the university). The chapter president was personally ordered to pay $6.5 million.
• Timothy Piazza – Penn State, Beta Theta Pi (2017): Piazza died from traumatic brain injuries after a bid-acceptance night of extreme drinking. His fall was caught on the fraternity’s own security camera while brothers delayed calling for help. The case led to Pennsylvania’ Timothy J. Piazza Anti-Hazing Law.
• Max Gruver – LSU, Phi Delta Theta (2017): Gruver died during a “Bible study” drinking game. His case led to Louisiana’s Max Gruver Act, making hazing a felony. His family later won a $6.1 million verdict.
• Andrew Coffey – Florida State Univ., Pi Kappa Phi (2017): Coffey died from alcohol poisoning at a “Big Brother” night. His death prompted FSU to suspend all Greek life.

What This Means for Amherst Families: These are not distant stories. The same national organizations—Pi Kappa Alpha, Sigma Alpha Epsilon, Phi Delta Theta, Pi Kappa Phi—have active chapters at Texas universities. Their national headquarters know these lethal patterns exist. When a Texas chapter repeats them, it demonstrates foreseeability, a key element in proving the national organization was negligent.

The Texas University Landscape: Where Amherst Students Go and the Risks They Face

Families in Amherst and Lamb County often send their children to major universities across the state. Our deep knowledge of these campuses and their Greek ecosystems is part of how we build cases.

For Amherst Families: The Local & Regional Connection

While our children may travel for college, the legal principles and our ability to help follow them. Many students from our area attend:

• Texas Tech University (Lubbock): A major hub with a vast Greek system and over 400 registered student organizations. Its proximity makes it a common choice for Panhandle families.
• West Texas A&M University (Canyon): A growing regional university with active Greek life and tradition-heavy campus groups.
• Wayland Baptist University (Plainview): A smaller campus where hazing can still occur in athletic teams or close-knit clubs.
• Other Texas A&M System Schools: Many students attend A&M-Commerce, A&M-Kingsville, or Prairie View A&M.
• The Major Flagships: Students also attend the University of Texas at Austin, Texas A&M in College Station, and the University of Houston.

Wherever your student is, we have the data and network to investigate. Using our Texas Hazing Intelligence Engine, we maintain a directory of thousands of Greek-related entities across the state. For example, public records show Greek organizations based right in our region:

• EIN 751283953: Gamma Phi House Corporation of Kappa Alpha Theta Fraternity, Lubbock, TX 79423.
• EIN 475033161: TKE OP Housing, Lubbock, TX 79423.
• EIN 475370943: Alpha Sigma Phi Fraternity – Theta Delta Chapter, Houston, TX 77204 (with chapters statewide).
• EIN 462267515: Beta Nu Pi Kappa Phi Fraternity Housing Corporation Inc., Frisco, TX 75035 (the entity being sued in the UH case).

This is just a sample. We track the house corporations, alumni chapters, and national entities that hold insurance and ultimate responsibility.

University-Specific Hazing Environments

1. Texas Tech University (Lubbock)
Tech’s Greek community is one of the largest in West Texas. Hazing allegations have surfaced in various forms, from forced drinking in fraternities to abusive “conditioning” in spirit organizations. The university has an Office of Student Conduct and a hazing policy, but internal discipline often lacks the transparency and consequence families seek. A civil case may involve the Lubbock County courts and would investigate both the local chapter and the national organization’s history with similar incidents.

2. West Texas A&M University (Canyon)
As part of the Texas A&M System, WTAMU has its own Greek life and Corps of Cadets detachment. The culture of tradition can sometimes blur the line between tough training and illegal hazing. The university’s internal processes are the first step, but they are designed to protect the institution. Families need independent legal counsel to ensure a full investigation.

3. The University of Houston – The Active Case We Are Fighting
The Bermudez case exemplifies the worst-case scenario. The lawsuit alleges the Pi Kappa Phi Beta Nu chapter engaged in systematic abuse: the degrading “pledge fanny pack,” forced overeating, waterboarding-like hose spraying, and extreme workouts that led to kidney failure. Despite having policies, UH and Pi Kappa Phi national allegedly failed to intervene. The chapter is now closed, but the lawsuit for damages and accountability continues. We use this active litigation experience in every case we handle.

Fraternities & Sororities: Connecting National Histories to Local Chapters

When we take a case, we don’t just look at the local event. We investigate the national history of the organization. This “pattern and practice” evidence is devastating in court. It proves the national headquarters knew or should have known this could happen.

A Sample of National Organizations with Documented Hazing Histories:

• Pi Kappa Alpha (Pike): Responsible for the Stone Foltz death ($10M settlement). Known for high-risk alcohol hazing during “Big/Little” events.
• Sigma Alpha Epsilon (SAE): Has faced numerous lawsuits, including a traumatic brain injury case at Alabama and a chemical burns case at Texas A&M where pledges required skin grafts.
• Phi Delta Theta: The Max Gruver death at LSU led to felony hazing laws.
• Pi Kappa Phi: The Andrew Coffey death at FSU. Now, our lawsuit against their Beta Nu chapter at UH.
• Kappa Alpha Order: Multiple chapters suspended for paddling and alcohol hazing, including at SMU.

If your child is harmed by a chapter of one of these organizations, we already have a map of their prior failures. We know what internal documents to subpoena, what policies they paid lip service to, and how to prove their negligence was a direct cause of the harm.

Building a Hazing Case: Evidence, Strategy, and Damages

Winning a hazing case requires a meticulous, aggressive investigation from day one. This is where our experience as complex litigators—having taken on giants like BP in the Texas City explosion litigation—is indispensable.

The Evidence Checklist: What We Gather

1. Digital Forensics: The #1 source of evidence. We secure and analyze:
   • Group Chats (GroupMe, WhatsApp, Discord): Showing planning, boasting, threats, and cover-up attempts.
   • Social Media (Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok): Photos/videos of the acts, location tags, captions.
   • Deleted Messages: Through forensic tools, we can often recover what they tried to erase.
2. Internal Organization Records: Subpoenaed from the national headquarters.
   • Prior incident reports on the same chapter.
   • Risk management manuals and training materials (often showing they knew the risks).
   • Communications between chapter officers and national advisors.
3. University Records: Obtained through discovery or public information requests.
   • Prior disciplinary records for the same group.
   • Campus police reports.
   • Emails between administrators discussing the group’s risks.
4. Medical Records: Documenting the full extent of physical and psychological injury.
5. Witness Testimony: From other pledges, former members, roommates, and bystanders.

Types of Damages We Fight to Recover

A civil lawsuit seeks to make the victim and family whole, and to punish reckless conduct. Recoverable damages include:

• Economic Damages: All medical bills (ER, hospital, surgery, therapy), future medical care, lost wages, and loss of future earning capacity if injuries are permanent.
• Non-Economic Damages: Compensation for physical pain, emotional suffering, mental anguish, humiliation, and loss of enjoyment of life.
• Wrongful Death Damages (in tragedy): Funeral costs, loss of financial support, and loss of companionship, love, and guidance for the family.
• Punitive Damages: In cases of especially reckless or malicious conduct, to punish the defendants and deter future behavior.

Practical Guide for Parents & Students in Amherst, Texas

For Parents: Warning Signs and Action Steps

Warning Signs Your Child May Be Being Hazed:

• Unexplained injuries (bruises, burns, limping).
• Extreme exhaustion, sleep deprivation.
• Sudden secrecy about group activities.
• Personality changes: anxiety, depression, withdrawal.
• Constant, anxious phone use monitoring group chats.
• Requests for unusual amounts of money (for “fines,” alcohol, gifts).

What to Do If You Suspect Hazing:

1. Talk Calmly: Ask open-ended questions. “I’m worried about you. Is anything happening with your group that makes you feel unsafe or humiliated?”
2. Prioritize Safety: If they are in immediate danger, call 911.
3. Preserve Evidence: Help them screenshot messages and photograph injuries.
4. Contact a Lawyer BEFORE Reporting: We can guide you on how to report to the university or police in a way that protects your child’s rights and preserves evidence. Once you report, the institution’s lawyers take over.

Critical Mistakes That Can Ruin a Case

• Deleting Evidence: Telling your child to “clean up” their phone destroys the case.
• Confronting the Fraternity Directly: This triggers their legal defense and evidence destruction.
• Signing University Paperwork: Do not sign any “resolution agreements” or releases without an attorney.
• Posting on Social Media: Defense lawyers scour social media for inconsistencies.
• Waiting Too Long: Evidence disappears, witnesses graduate, memories fade. Texas has a two-year statute of limitations for personal injury.

Why Families in Amherst Choose Attorney911 / The Manginello Law Firm

When your family is in crisis, you need more than a lawyer; you need advocates who understand the enemy’s playbook and have the resources to win.

• We Are Leading the Fight Right Now: We are actively litigating the Leonel Bermudez v. UH & Pi Kappa Phi case. We are in the trenches against a major university and national fraternity. This isn’t theoretical knowledge; it’s active, current experience.

• Insider Insurance Knowledge: Our attorney, Mr. Lupe Peña, spent years as an insurance defense attorney for a national firm. He knows exactly how fraternity and university insurance companies undervalue claims, use delay tactics, and fight coverage. We know their strategy because we used to help execute it.

• Experience Against Giant Institutions: Managing partner Ralph Manginello was one of the few plaintiff attorneys involved in the BP Texas City explosion litigation. We are not intimidated by billion-dollar corporations, wealthy national fraternities, or large university systems. We have the resources and tenacity to match them.

• Deep Texas Data & Investigation: Our Texas Hazing Intelligence Engine—tracking over 1,400 Greek entities across 25 metros—means we don’t start from scratch. We know the organizational landscape, who holds insurance, and how to find the responsible parties.

• Compassionate, Client-Focused Advocacy: We are parents ourselves. We understand the fear, anger, and helplessness you feel. We fight not just for compensation, but for answers, accountability, and change to protect other students from harm.

Your Next Step: A Free, Confidential Consultation

If hazing has impacted your child and your family, you do not have to navigate this nightmare alone. The institutions involved have lawyers whose job is to protect them. You deserve advocates whose only job is to protect you and your child.

We offer a free, completely confidential consultation to families in Amherst, Littlefield, Earth, and across Texas. In this meeting, we will:

• Listen carefully to your story.
• Review any evidence you have.
• Explain your legal options clearly.
• Answer your questions about the process, timelines, and costs.
• We work on a contingency fee basis—you pay nothing unless we win your case.

Contact The Manginello Law Firm, PLLC – Attorney911 Today.

Call us 24/7 at 1-888-ATTY-911 (1-888-288-9911).
Direct Line: (713) 528-9070
Email: ralph@atty911.com | lupe@atty911.com
Se habla Español. Mr. Peña provides fluent Spanish-language legal services.

Website: https://attorney911.com

Let us help you turn this crisis into a fight for justice, accountability, and a safer future for all students.

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.