Hazing Victims in Saint Bernard Parish: Your Legal Rights and How to Fight Back
🚨 This Happens Here Too: Hazing in Saint Bernard Parish
Saint Bernard Parish families send their children to college expecting them to be safe. They trust universities and Greek organizations to provide a positive experience. But behind the Greek letters and promises of brotherhood, a dangerous culture of hazing thrives – even right here in Louisiana.
The same fraternities involved in nationwide hazing scandals operate at universities near Saint Bernard Parish. Pi Kappa Phi, Sigma Alpha Epsilon, Pi Kappa Alpha – these are the same organizations that have paid millions in settlements for hazing deaths and injuries across America. And they have active chapters at institutions serving Saint Bernard Parish students.
If your child is pledging a fraternity or sorority near Saint Bernard Parish, they face the same risks that hospitalized our client in Houston. The same waterboarding. The same forced drinking. The same physical abuse disguised as “tradition.”
This isn’t just happening elsewhere. It’s happening to Saint Bernard Parish families too.
🏥 The Medical Reality: What Hazing Does to Bodies
Hazing isn’t just “boys being boys” or “harmless fun.” It’s a systematic form of abuse that causes real, documented medical harm to Saint Bernard Parish students:
Physical Injuries We’ve Seen:
- Rhabdomyolysis – muscle breakdown that causes kidney failure (our current case)
- Acute alcohol poisoning – from forced drinking (multiple hazing deaths)
- Traumatic brain injuries – from beatings or falls
- Broken bones – from physical abuse
- Internal bleeding – from blunt force trauma
- Hypothermia/hyperthermia – from exposure to extreme temperatures
- Sexual assault injuries – from hazing rituals
Psychological Trauma Documented:
- PTSD – from waterboarding, torture, humiliation
- Anxiety disorders – fear of retribution, social ostracism
- Depression – from isolation and abuse
- Suicidal ideation – from extreme psychological pressure
- Trust issues – difficulty forming relationships after betrayal
Saint Bernard Parish parents: If your child comes home different after pledging – withdrawn, anxious, depressed – it might be hazing.
⚖️ Louisiana Law Protects Hazing Victims
Louisiana has strong laws against hazing, and victims have powerful legal options:
Louisiana Revised Statutes § 17:1801 – Hazing Prohibited
- Definition: Any activity that recklessly or intentionally endangers the mental or physical health of a student
- Penalties: Up to $1,000 fine and 6 months in jail
- Consent is NOT a defense – even if your child “agreed” to participate
Civil Liability for Hazing in Louisiana
Saint Bernard Parish families can sue for:
- Medical expenses (past and future)
- Pain and suffering (physical and emotional)
- Lost wages (current and future earning capacity)
- Punitive damages (to punish egregious conduct)
- Wrongful death (if hazing results in death)
**The Max Gruver Act (
