The Complete Guide to Hazing in Texas: What Families in the Town of Broaddus Need to Know About Campus Safety and Legal Rights

If Your Child Was Hurt in a Fraternity, Sorority, or Campus Group, You’re Not Alone

It starts with a phone call no parent in the Town of Broaddus ever wants to receive. Your child, who you sent off to college with hope and pride, is whispering from a hospital room or speaking through tears of shame and fear. The story comes out in fragments: late-night “workouts” that left them vomiting, forced drinking games during “bid acceptance,” humiliating tasks demanded through constant group chats, or physical punishment disguised as tradition. They might say, “It’s just what everyone does,” or “I agreed to it,” but you hear the pain in their voice and see the bruises they can’t explain. For families in San Augustine County and across East Texas, the nightmare of campus hazing is real—and it’s happening right now at universities where our children study.

Right here in Texas, we’re fighting one of the most serious hazing cases in the country. In November 2025, we filed a $10 million lawsuit on behalf of Leonel Bermudez, a University of Houston student who nearly died after brutal hazing by the Pi Kappa Phi Beta Nu chapter. His story—involving forced consumption of milk, hot dogs, and peppercorns until vomiting, 100+ push-ups and 500 squats under threat of expulsion, and ultimately rhabdomyolysis and acute kidney failure requiring four days of hospitalization—shows how quickly “tradition” becomes torture. The chapter is now shut down, but the physical and psychological damage to Leonel continues. This is not an isolated incident in faraway states; this happened at our flagship Houston university, and similar patterns occur at campuses across Texas where Town of Broaddus families send their children.

This comprehensive guide explains what hazing really looks like in 2025, how Texas law protects students, what’s happening at major universities like Texas A&M, UT Austin, Baylor, and SMU, and what legal options exist for families in the Town of Broaddus facing this crisis. We’ll provide specific, actionable information because when your child is hurt, you deserve more than generic advice—you need Texas-specific facts from attorneys who understand both the legal landscape and the cultural realities of Greek life and campus organizations in our state.

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)
• We provide immediate help – that’s why we’re the Legal Emergency Lawyers™

In the first 48 hours:

• Get medical attention immediately, even if the student insists they are “fine”
• Preserve evidence BEFORE it’s deleted:
  • Screenshot group chats, texts, DMs immediately
  • Photograph injuries from multiple angles
  • Save physical items (clothing, receipts, objects)
• Write down everything while memory is fresh (who, what, when, where)
• Do NOT:
  • Confront the fraternity/sorority
  • Sign anything from the university or insurance company
  • Post details on public social media
  • Let your child delete messages or “clean up” evidence

Contact an experienced hazing attorney within 24–48 hours:

• Evidence disappears fast (deleted group chats, destroyed paddles, coached witnesses)
• Universities move quickly to control the narrative
• We can help preserve evidence and protect your child’s rights
• Call 1-888-ATTY-911 for immediate consultation

Hazing in 2025: What It Really Looks Like Beyond the Stereotypes

For families in the Town of Broaddus who may be unfamiliar with modern Greek life or campus organization dynamics, understanding what constitutes hazing is the first step toward recognizing danger. Hazing isn’t just “boys being boys” or harmless initiation pranks—it’s a systematic pattern of coercion, humiliation, and abuse that endangers physical and mental health.

The Legal Definition vs. Reality

Under Texas Education Code Chapter 37, hazing means any intentional, knowing, or reckless act, on or off campus, directed against a student that endangers mental or physical health and occurs for purposes of pledging, initiation, affiliation, or maintaining membership in any organization. What this means in practice is far broader than most parents realize.

Modern hazing has evolved into three escalating tiers:

Subtle Hazing (Tier 1) often gets dismissed as “tradition” but sets the stage for worse:

• Required servitude: acting as 24/7 designated drivers, cleaning members’ rooms, running errands
• Social isolation: cutting off contact with non-members, requiring permission to socialize
• “Pledge fanny pack” rules like in the UH Pi Kappa Phi case, where Leonel Bermudez had to carry condoms, sex toys, nicotine devices, and humiliating items at all times
• Constant digital monitoring: required instant responses to group chats at all hours, location sharing via Find My Friends or Snapchat Maps

Harassment Hazing (Tier 2) creates hostile, abusive environments:

• Sleep deprivation through late-night “meetings” or 3 AM wake-up calls for mandatory activities
• Food/water restriction or forced consumption of unpleasant substances
• “Smokings” or extreme calisthenics framed as “conditioning” but actually punitive
• Public humiliation through embarrassing costumes, public performances, or “roasting” sessions
• Exposure to disgusting conditions like lying in vomit-soaked grass as alleged in the UH case

Violent Hazing (Tier 3) has high potential for injury or death:

• Forced alcohol consumption through “lineup” drinking games, Big/Little nights with handles of liquor
• Physical beatings and paddling, even when officially prohibited by national organizations