If you’re reading this in Fulton County, your family may be facing one of the most terrifying moments of your life. Your child went to college hoping to make friends, forge new connections, and find their place. Instead, they were tortured. They were abused. They were brought to the brink of physical or mental collapse, or worse. We understand what you’re going through. We’re here to help families in Fulton County fight back against the insidious culture of hazing that continues to plague campuses across America.

We are Attorney911. We are a team of legal emergency lawyers, and we are actively fighting this battle right now. Our firm, led by Ralph Manginello and Lupe Peña, recently filed a $10 million lawsuit against Pi Kappa Phi, the University of Houston, and 13 individual fraternity members for the brutal hazing that hospitalized our client with kidney failure. This isn’t theoretical – we are in the trenches, aggressively seeking justice for victims. The same aggressive representation we bring to cases in Houston, Austin, and Beaumont, we bring to families in Fulton County and nationwide.

The Haunting Reality: What Hazing Really Looks Like Today

For too long, hazing has been dismissed as harmless fun, “boys being boys,” or traditional rites of passage. But the truth, as evidenced by the horrific ordeal suffered by our client and countless others, is that hazing is nothing short of abuse, torture, and criminal behavior. It’s what happens when young people are subjected to systematic degradation and physical torment in the name of “brotherhood” or “sisterhood.”

We want parents in Fulton County to understand that the hazing of today bears no resemblance to the pranks of yesteryear. It is a serious, often life-threatening, emergency.

Consider the detailed allegations from our lawsuit, the case of Leonel Bermudez against Pi Kappa Phi and the University of Houston, filed here in Texas in November 2025. This happened not in a distant past, but weeks ago, at a major public university, in a city not unlike many vibrant college towns across the country where students from Fulton County might attend.

The Systematic Abuse Endured by Leonel Bermudez: A Glimpse into Modern Hazing

Leonel Bermudez was a “ghost rush,” a prospective member who wasn’t even enrolled at the University of Houston yet, planning to transfer for the upcoming semester. Yet, he was subjected to an almost seven-week campaign of systematic abuse. Here’s what hazing looked like for him, according to our lawsuit and corroborated by media reports:

Waterboarding with a Garden Hose: Imagine your child, trying to make friends, being subjected to a simulation of drowning. Leonel was sprayed in the face with a garden hose while doing calisthenics, forced to run repeatedly under the threat of being waterboarded again. This isn’t a game; it is a recognized form of torture, a war crime when inflicted on enemy combatants. It was inflicted on a college student.
Forced Eating Until Vomiting: He was compelled to consume large amounts of milk, hot dogs, and peppercorns until he vomited. Then, incredibly, he was forced to continue running sprints while clearly in physical distress and made to lie in his own vomit-soaked grass. This is not tradition; it is deliberate humiliation and physical torment.
Extreme Physical Punishment: This included 100-plus pushups, 500 squats, and other grueling exercises like high-volume “suicides,” bear crawls, wheelbarrows, “save-you-brother” drills, two-mile warmups, and repeated 100-yard crawls. He was forced to recite the fraternity creed during these exercises and threatened with immediate expulsion if he stopped. The physical exertion was so intense that he eventually became so exhausted he could not stand without help. These are not character-building activities; they are designed to break a person down.
Being Struck with Wooden Paddles: Physical beatings were part of the abuse. This is outright assault, plain and simple.
Psychological Torture and Humiliation: Leonel was forced to strip to his underwear in cold weather and made to carry a fanny pack containing objects of a sexual nature at all times. Another pledge was even hog-tied face-down on a table with an object in his mouth for over an hour. Threats of physical punishment and expulsion were constant, along with enforced dress codes, study hours, and weekly interviews designed to control and degrade.
Sleep Deprivation: He was compelled to drive fraternity members during the early morning hours, contributing to his chronic exhaustion, which affected his daily life and ability to recover.

The Devastating Medical Consequences: Rhabdomyolysis and Kidney Failure

The relentless physical abuse Leonel endured led to a life-threatening medical emergency. After the final, punishing workout on November 3, 2025, he collapsed. He crawled home, too sore to move, and his condition worsened over the next two days. On November 6, his mother rushed him to the hospital, where he was found to be passing brown urine – a classic sign of severe muscle breakdown.

He was diagnosed with severe rhabdomyolysis and acute kidney failure. Rhabdomyolysis is the rapid breakdown of muscle tissue, releasing damaging proteins into the bloodstream that can overwhelm and destroy the kidneys. He spent three nights and four days hospitalized, undergoing intensive medical treatment. While he survived, he faces ongoing risks of chronic kidney disease and requires continued monitoring. This is the very same medical condition our attorneys have successfully litigated against before, giving Ralph Manginello specific expertise in rhabdomyolysis hazing cases.

It’s Not Just Houston: Hazing in Fulton County and Beyond

This harrowing story from a Houston-area university should be a stark warning to families in Fulton County. While our firm is based in Texas, the patterns of hazing, the national fraternities involved, and the institutional failures of universities are not unique to any one state or region. Fulton County is home to several esteemed educational institutions, and many more are just a short drive away in Georgia—universities like Emory University, Georgia Tech, Georgia State University, and the University of West Georgia. All of these institutions, and hundreds more across the country, host chapters of the same national fraternities that have been implicated in hazing deaths and serious injuries.

The same insidious “traditions” that hospitalized our client in Houston can occur, and likely do occur, at fraternity and sorority chapters on campuses throughout Georgia, including those where students from Fulton County matriculate. Parents in Fulton County send their children off to college with dreams, not nightmares. They expect a safe environment for learning and growth, not a crucible of abuse.

Who is Responsible for Hazing? Everyone Who Participated or Allowed It.

When hazing incidents like what happened to Leonel Bermudez occur, families in Fulton County often feel overwhelmed and unsure of whom to hold accountable. The truth is, there are usually multiple layers of responsibility, and our strategy involves pursuing every single entity that played a part in the abuse, neglect, or cover-up. We don’t just go after the individual perpetrators; we target the powerful institutions that allow this culture to thrive.

In the Bermudez case, and in every hazing case we pursue on behalf of families in Fulton County, we investigate and bring claims against:

The Local Fraternity Chapter: This includes the specific chapter that directly organized and conducted the hazing activities. They are the frontline perpetrators.
Chapter Officers and Leaders: Individuals like the chapter president, pledgemaster, and other leaders who directed, encouraged, or failed to stop the hazing are personally liable. They held positions of authority and consciously allowed the abuse to occur.
Individual Members: Every member who participated in the hazing, or even witnessed it and failed to intervene or report, can be held responsible. Their actions, or inactions, contribute to the culture of abuse. In the Bermudez case, 13 individual fraternity members, including current and former members, were named. This even extended to a former member and his spouse because some major hazing sessions occurred at their residence, implicating them through premises liability.
The National Fraternity Organization: These national bodies, like Pi Kappa Phi National Headquarters, often claim ignorance or distance from local chapter activities. However, they are legally obligated to oversee their chapters, enforce anti-hazing policies, and ensure member safety. When they fail to do so, especially when they have prior knowledge of hazing, they are deeply liable. In the Bermudez case, evidence suggests Pi Kappa Phi National knew about a “hazing crisis” but failed to act, a pattern of negligence that is inexcusable.
The University or College: Educational institutions have a fundamental duty to provide a safe environment for their students. This includes overseeing Greek life organizations, implementing and enforcing anti-hazing policies, and taking action when hazing is reported. In the Bermudez case, the University of Houston owned the fraternity house where much of the hazing took place, making their liability particularly strong through premises liability. Furthermore, UH had a prior hazing hospitalization in 2017, meaning they had actual notice of the dangers and failed to prevent a repeat.
The Housing Corporation: Often, fraternities operate through separate housing corporations that own or manage the chapter house. These entities also have a responsibility to maintain safe premises and can be held liable if hazing occurs on their property.
Insurance Carriers: Behind every university and national organization are often multiple layers of liability insurance. These are the “deep pockets” that ultimately pay out multi-million dollar settlements and verdicts. Our firm, particularly with attorneys like Lupe Peña and Ralph Manginello, who have extensive experience in insurance defense, knows precisely how to navigate these complex policies and maximize recovery for victims. We know their playbook because we used to write it.

It is crucial for Fulton County families to understand that this isn’t about merely penalizing college kids. It’s about holding powerful, well-funded institutions and their leaders accountable for creating or tolerating environments where torture and abuse can thrive.

Multi-Million Dollar Proof: Hazing Cases Win Big for Victims

For families in Fulton County wondering if pursuing a hazing lawsuit is truly worth it, the answer is a resounding yes. Our firm’s willingness to pursue a $10 million lawsuit for Leonel Bermudez is not arbitrary; it’s rooted in a strong legal framework and a history of multi-million dollar verdicts and settlements in similar hazing cases across the nation.

These precedent cases send a clear message: hazing costs universities and national fraternities millions of dollars. This directly impacts their bottom line, forcing them to take hazing seriously. The same legal strategies and precedents that secured these outcomes are available to victims in Fulton County.

Stone Foltz – Bowling Green State University / Pi Kappa Alpha (2021)

Total: Over $10.1 Million
Stone Foltz died in 2021 from alcohol poisoning during a hazing event at Bowling Green State University’s Pi Kappa Alpha chapter. He was forced to drink an entire bottle of alcohol. The tragic outcome resulted in a settlement of $2.9 million from Bowling Green State University and $7.2 million from Pi Kappa Alpha National and its individual members. Most recently, in December 2024, a judgment of $6.5 million was awarded against Daylen Dunson, the former chapter president, showing that individual perpetrators can be held personally liable for massive sums. This combined payout of over $10.1 million is the largest public university hazing payout in Ohio history. Our $10 million demand in the Bermudez case is directly in line with this precedent.

Maxwell Gruver – Louisiana State University / Phi Delta Theta (2017)

Total: $6.1 Million Verdict
In 2017, Maxwell Gruver, an 18-year-old freshman, died from acute alcohol poisoning (BAC of 0.495, over six times the legal limit) during a Phi Delta Theta hazing ritual at Louisiana State University known as “Bible Study.” Pledges were forced to drink large amounts of alcohol for answering questions incorrectly. A jury awarded his family a $6.1 million verdict. This verdict was followed by criminal convictions and the passage of the Max Gruver Act, which made hazing a felony in Louisiana – a powerful testament to how these cases drive legislative change.

Timothy Piazza – Penn State University / Beta Theta Pi (2017)

Total: Over $110 Million (Estimated Settlements)
Timothy Piazza, 19, died in 2017 after a brutal hazing ritual at Penn State’s Beta Theta Pi fraternity. He was forced to consume 18 drinks in 82 minutes, reaching a near-fatal BAC of 0.36. He suffered multiple falls, including down a flight of stairs, resulting in a traumatic brain injury and internal bleeding. Fraternity brothers waited 12 hours before calling 911. Security cameras in the house captured the entire horrific event. While confidential, the settlements in this case are estimated to exceed $110 million, leading to multiple criminal convictions and the passage of Pennsylvania’s Timothy J. Piazza Antihazing Law. This case underscores that strong evidence of egregious conduct can lead to massive outcomes.

Andrew Coffey – Florida State University / Pi Kappa Phi (2017)

The Same Fraternity, 8 Years Prior.
Perhaps most relevant to our current litigation is the tragic death of Andrew Coffey in 2017 at a Pi Kappa Phi hazing event at Florida State University. He was forced to drink an entire bottle of Wild Turkey 101 bourbon and died from acute alcohol poisoning. This resulted in criminal charges against nine fraternity members and the permanent closure of the chapter.
This is critical for Fulton County families: Pi Kappa Phi National, the same organization we are suing here in Texas, had eight years since Andrew Coffey’s death to fix its deadly hazing culture. They failed. In November 2025, exactly eight years after Coffey’s death, Leonel Bermudez was hospitalized from hazing at another Pi Kappa Phi chapter. This establishes a clear pattern of negligence and places the national organization squarely in the crosshairs for punitive damages.

Other Significant Hazing Cases:

Adam Oakes (VCU, Delta Chi, 2021): Died from alcohol poisoning during hazing. Lawsuit for $28 million settled for over $4 million in October 2024, leading to “Adam’s Law” in Virginia.
Sam Martinez (Washington State, Alpha Tau Omega, 2019): Died from alcohol poisoning. Settled for $2.5 million against the national fraternity.
Nicholas Dunphy (University of Missouri, Phi Gamma Delta, 2020): Died from alcohol poisoning. Settled for $3.3 million against the national fraternity.
Danny Santulli (University of Missouri, Phi Gamma Delta, 2021): Suffered permanent brain damage from forced alcohol consumption. Settled for a multi-million dollar amount.
Chad Meredith (Miami University, Kappa Sigma, 2001): Drowned during a forced swim hazing ritual. A jury awarded his family $12.6 million.
UH Student (Pi Kappa Alpha, 2017): A student at the University of Houston was hospitalized with a lacerated spleen from hazing. While a different fraternity, this means the University of Houston had prior notice of serious hazing on its campus.

The Message is Clear: Accountability is Due

These multi-million dollar payouts are not just numbers; they represent deep emotional and financial consequences for families, and they send an undeniable message to fraternities, universities, and national organizations: hazing will not be tolerated, and it will be costly. For families in Fulton County, these cases offer hope and a blueprint for justice. If it happened to your child, we have the experience and the legal precedent to fight for you.

Texas Law Protects You: Consent is NOT a Defense

For families in Fulton County whose children may attend college in Texas, or simply for any family seeking to understand the legal foundations of hazing cases, it is crucial to understand the protections embedded in state law. While many states have robust anti-hazing statutes, Texas’s law is particularly explicit on a critical point: consent is never a defense to hazing. This principle is fundamental to holding institutions and individuals accountable.

The Texas Anti-Hazing Law (Education Code § 37.151-37.157)

As attorneys primarily based in Texas, we are intimately familiar with the letter and spirit of this critical legislation. The Texas Education Code defines hazing comprehensively, and the activities endured by Leonel Bermudez fall squarely within its parameters:

Definition of Hazing (§ 37.151): The law broadly defines hazing as any intentional, knowing, or reckless act, on or off campus, directed against a student for the purpose of joining or maintaining membership in an organization, if that act:
- Involves physical brutality, such as hitting, beating, or striking (think wooden paddles).
- Includes sleep deprivation, exposure to the elements, or physical exercises (like 500 squats and waterboarding) that subject a student to an unreasonable risk of harm or adversely affect their mental or physical health.
- Involves forced consumption of food, liquid, or alcohol that creates an unreasonable risk of harm (like forcing someone to eat until they vomit).
- Requires a student to violate the Penal Code.
- Involves coercing a student to consume drugs or alcohol to the point of intoxication.
Leonel Bermudez’s ordeal, including waterboarding, extreme physical exertion to the point of kidney failure, forced eating until vomiting, and being struck with wooden paddles, satisfies multiple components of this legal definition.
Criminal Penalties (§ 37.152): Hazing is a crime in Texas.
- Engaging in or encouraging hazing is a Class B Misdemeanor.
- Hazing that causes serious bodily injury (like Leonel’s rhabdomyolysis and acute kidney failure) is a Class A Misdemeanor, punishable by up to one year in jail and a $4,000 fine.
- Hazing that causes death is a State Jail Felony, carrying 180 days to two years in state jail and a $10,000 fine.
- Even having firsthand knowledge of hazing and failing to report it is a Class B Misdemeanor.
The University of Houston spokesperson herself commented on “potential criminal charges” in the Bermudez case, highlighting the serious criminal implications.
Organizational Liability (§ 37.153): The law clearly states that organizations commit an offense if they condone or encourage hazing, or if officers, members, pledges, or alumni commit hazing. Penalties can include fines up to $10,000, denial of operating rights, and forfeiture of property. This ensures that the local chapter, national organization, and even alumni groups can be held responsible.
Institutional Reporting Requirements (§ 37.155): Universities in Texas are legally mandated to report hazing incidents to the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board within 30 days of becoming aware of them. Failing to do so is a Class B Misdemeanor. This mechanism is designed to provide greater transparency and accountability from educational institutions.

Why “Consent is NOT a Defense” is a Game-Changer (§ 37.154)

This is perhaps the most powerful aspect of anti-hazing legislation, not just in Texas but in many states that have adopted similar provisions. Hazing perpetrators and their institutions frequently attempt to deflect blame by asserting that the victim “consented” to the activities, “knew what they were getting into,” or “could have left at any time.”

Texas law explicitly, unequivocally rejects this defense:

“It is not a defense to prosecution for an offense under this subchapter that the person against whom the hazing was directed consented to or acquiesced in the hazing activity.”

This provision is critical in civil litigation:

Foreclosed Defense: It preemptively eliminates one of the most common legal arguments that fraternities and universities attempt to use.
Focus on the Act: It shifts the legal inquiry from the victim’s perceived “choice” to the illegal and harmful nature of the hazing itself.
Acknowledges Coercion: The law implicitly recognizes that true consent is impossible in an environment characterized by immense peer pressure, fear of ostracism, threats of expulsion, and power imbalances. Students subject to hazing are often in a coercive situation where opting out carries severe social or even physical penalties.

For families in Fulton County, this means that even if your child initially participated in what they were told was “tradition,” the law recognizes that they could not genuinely consent to abuse or endangerment. This legal principle is a powerful tool in seeking justice for hazing victims.

Civil Claims: Beyond Criminal Prosecutions

While criminal charges can be pursued against individuals and organizations, civil lawsuits aim to secure financial compensation for victims and their families. Our firm pursues a range of civil liability theories, which exist in most states, including Georgia:

Negligence Claims: Holding individuals and institutions accountable for failing to exercise reasonable care—a duty they owe to students—which directly led to the hazing injury.
Premises Liability: If hazing occurs on university property or a fraternity house, the property owner (e.g., the university or a housing corporation) can be held liable for failing to maintain a safe environment. This is a key component of the Bermudez case, where UH owned the fraternity house.
Negligent Supervision: Charging national organizations and universities for failing to adequately supervise their chapters or Greek life, thereby allowing hazing to occur.
Assault and Battery: Direct claims against individual perpetrators for intentional harmful or offensive contact.
Intentional Infliction of Emotional Distress: For outrageous conduct that causes severe emotional suffering, such as the psychological torture inherent in many hazing rituals.
Wrongful Death: When hazing leads to a fatality, families can seek compensation for their profound loss.

These civil claims provide a path for substantial financial recovery for medical bills, lost income, pain and suffering, and often, punitive damages to punish egregious misconduct. The existence of these comprehensive legal frameworks means that victims of hazing in Fulton County have robust legal avenues to seek justice and hold all responsible parties accountable.

Why Attorney911 is the Clear Choice for Fulton County Hazing Victims

When your family faces the trauma of hazing, choosing the right legal representation is one of the most critical decisions you will make. This isn’t just any personal injury case; it requires specialized knowledge, aggressive litigation tactics, and a deep understanding of the unique dynamics of Greek life, university oversight, and national fraternity corporate structures.

For families in Fulton County, Attorney911 offers:

1. Unmatched Hazing Litigation Expertise: We Are in the Fight Right Now

We are not a firm that simply hopes to handle hazing cases. We are actively and aggressively litigating a high-stakes, multi-million dollar hazing lawsuit against major institutions right now. The Bermudez v. Pi Kappa Phi and University of Houston case, filed in November 2025, is our flagship. It proves that we don’t just talk about hazing; we are fighting it in court with a $10 million demand. Families in Fulton County get the same front-line experience, the same data-driven litigation strategy, and the same relentless pursuit of justice.