The Definitive Guide to Hazing Lawsuits & Accountability: A Resource for Richland Families in Navarro County

If This Just Happened: Immediate, Actionable Help

For Parents in Richland, Navarro County, and across North Texas: If your child is in danger RIGHT NOW from hazing or campus abuse, your priority is safety and evidence. Call 911 for any medical emergency. Then, contact us immediately at 1-888-ATTY-911 (1-888-288-9911). We are the Legal Emergency Lawyers™, and we provide immediate guidance to protect your family’s rights.

In the First 48 Hours:

• Get Medical Attention: Even if injuries seem minor, emergency documentation is crucial. Conditions like rhabdomyolysis (severe muscle breakdown) may not be immediately apparent.
• Preserve Digital Evidence: Screenshot ALL group chats (GroupMe, WhatsApp, iMessage), text messages, and social media posts related to the incident. Take photos of any visible injuries from multiple angles.
• Do NOT: Confront the fraternity, sorority, or university directly. Do not delete any messages or “clean up” evidence. Do not sign anything from an insurance adjuster or university official. Do not post details on public social media.
• Document Everything: Write down a timeline of events while memories are fresh. Include names, dates, locations, and what was said.
• Contact an Experienced Hazing Attorney: Evidence disappears quickly. Universities and national organizations move fast to control narratives. We can help secure evidence and advise on next steps. Call 1-888-ATTY-911 now.

A Texas-Specific Hazing Nightmare: This Happens Here

Picture this: A student from Richland or nearby Corsicana is excited to start a new chapter at a major Texas university. During a “pledge event” at an off-campus house, what begins as camaraderie turns coercive. He is forced to endure extreme physical exertion—hundreds of push-ups and squats—under threat of expulsion from the brotherhood. Later, he is subjected to humiliating rituals, forced to carry a degrading “pledge fanny pack,” and sprayed in the face with a hose in a manner compared to waterboarding.

Days later, he is crawling upstairs at home, unable to stand. His urine is brown—a terrifying sign of severe muscle breakdown. He is rushed to the hospital, where doctors diagnose rhabdomyolysis and acute kidney failure, requiring a four-day hospitalization and facing the risk of permanent organ damage.

This is not a hypothetical. This is the real case of Leonel Bermudez, a University of Houston student. In late 2025, he filed a $10 million hazing and abuse lawsuit against the University of Houston, the Pi Kappa Phi fraternity’s Beta Nu chapter, its national headquarters, its housing corporation, the UH System Board of Regents, and 13 individual fraternity leaders.

As covered in the Click2Houston report on UH Pi Kappa Phi hazing case and ABC13 coverage of Leonel Bermudez’s UH hazing lawsuit, the allegations include systematic abuse: enforced dress codes, overnight driving duties, forced overconsumption of food leading to vomiting, “hog-tying” of another pledge, and workouts at Houston’s Yellowstone Boulevard Park that pushed students to physical collapse. Our firm, Attorney911, represents Mr. Bermudez in this ongoing litigation.

For parents and families in Richland, Navarro County, and communities across Texas like Corsicana, Kerens, and Blooming Grove, this case is a stark warning. Hazing is not a relic of the past or something that only happens “somewhere else.” It is a present, severe danger on Texas campuses, and the consequences can be catastrophic, altering a young life forever.

This comprehensive guide is written for you. We will explain what modern hazing truly looks like, the Texas and federal laws that govern it, the national patterns that repeat at our state’s universities, and the legal pathways to accountability and recovery for your family.

Hazing in 2025: Beyond Stereotypes

Hazing is no longer just about “Hell Week” paddlings or silly pranks. It has evolved into a multifaceted form of abuse that leverages psychological pressure, digital control, and sophisticated secrecy. Understanding its modern forms is the first step in recognizing it.

A Modern Definition: Hazing is any intentional, knowing, or reckless act—occurring on or off campus—directed against a student for the purpose of pledging, initiation, affiliation, or maintaining membership in a group, that endangers the student’s mental or physical health or safety.

Key categories include:

• Alcohol & Substance Hazing: The most common and deadly form. This includes forced or coerced rapid consumption (“chugging,” “shotgunning”), drinking games with punitive rules, and being pressured to consume unknown or dangerous substances.
• Physical Hazing: Extreme calisthenics (“smokings”) beyond safe limits, paddling or beating, sleep deprivation, food/water deprivation, and exposure to extreme elements.
• Psychological & Digital Hazing: Verbal abuse, threats, social isolation, and forced humiliation. Crucially, this now includes 24/7 digital control via group chats (GroupMe, Discord), mandatory location sharing, social media policing, and public shaming online.
• Sexualized & Degrading Hazing: Forced nudity, simulated sexual acts, wearing humiliating costumes, and acts involving racial or sexist slurs and role-play.

Where It Happens: While fraternities and sororities are often the focus, hazing pervades many groups:

• Interfraternity Council (IFC) & Panhellenic Sororities
• National Pan-Hellenic Council (NPHC – “Divine Nine”) Organizations
• Multicultural Greek Councils (MGC)
• Corps of Cadets, ROTC, and military-style groups (especially relevant at Texas A&M)
• Athletic Teams (from football to cheerleading)
• Spirit Groups, Marching Bands, and Performance Ensembles
• Academic, Service, and Cultural Clubs

The common threads are power imbalance, secrecy, and tradition. New members are made to believe that enduring abuse is the only way to gain acceptance, and organizations hide these practices behind closed doors and coded language.

The Legal Framework: Texas Law & Federal Overlays

Texas Hazing Law (Education Code Chapter 37)

Texas has specific statutes criminalizing hazing. For families in Richland, understanding this framework is essential.

• Definition (§37.151): Hazing is any intentional, knowing, or reckless act that endangers the mental or physical health/safety of a student for the purpose of initiation, affiliation, or membership.
• Criminal Penalties (§37.152):
  • 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 to fail to report hazing or to retaliate against someone who does.
• Organizational Liability (§37.153): The fraternity, sorority, or club itself can be prosecuted and fined up to $10,000 per violation if it authorized or encouraged the hazing, or if an officer knew and failed to report it.
• Consent is NOT a Defense (§37.155): This is critical. Even if a student “agreed” to participate, it is not a legal defense against hazing charges. The law recognizes the coercive power of peer pressure and the desire for belonging.
• Immunity for Good-Faith Reporting (§37.154): Individuals who report hazing in good faith to university or law enforcement officials are immune from civil or criminal liability. Many universities also have medical amnesty policies to encourage calling 911 in alcohol-related emergencies.

Criminal vs. Civil Cases

• Criminal Cases: Brought by the state (e.g., Navarro County District Attorney, Harris County DA) to punish wrongdoers with jail, fines, or probation. Charges can include hazing, assault, furnishing alcohol to minors, or manslaughter in fatal cases.
• Civil Cases: Brought by the victim or their family to seek financial compensation and accountability. These cases focus on negligence, wrongful death, negligent supervision, and emotional distress. A criminal conviction is not required to file a civil lawsuit; they are separate paths that can run concurrently.

Federal Laws & University Accountability

• The Stop Campus Hazing Act (2024): This new federal law requires colleges receiving federal funds to publicly report hazing incidents and strengthen prevention programs, with full implementation by 2026. It will bring more transparency to long-hidden patterns.
• Title IX & The Clery Act: When hazing involves sexual harassment or assault, Title IX imposes specific duties on universities to investigate and respond. The Clery Act requires reporting of certain campus crimes, which can include hazing-related assaults.

Who Can Be Held Liable in a Civil Hazing Lawsuit?

A thorough investigation seeks to identify every entity that shares responsibility:

1. Individual Students: Those who planned, executed, or actively covered up the hazing.
2. Local Chapter/Organization: The campus chapter as a legal entity and its officers.
3. National Fraternity/Sorority Headquarters: Often the deepest pocket, liable for negligent supervision, failure to enforce policies, and having prior knowledge of dangerous patterns.
4. The University/Board of Regents: Can be liable for negligent supervision, deliberate indifference to known risks, or premises liability. Public universities (like UH, Texas A&M, UT) have some sovereign immunity protections, but exceptions exist.
5. Housing Corporations & Alumni Associations: Entities that own or control chapter houses.
6. Third Parties: Landlords of off-campus houses, bars that overserved alcohol (under Texas dram shop law), or security companies.

The Bermudez lawsuit against UH and Pi Kappa Phi is a prime example, naming defendants across all these categories: individual members, the local chapter, the national fraternity, the housing corporation, and the university system.

National Hazing Case Patterns: The Scripts That Repeat in Texas

Tragic cases across the country reveal predictable, repeating patterns. These national precedents directly inform how we build cases for Texas families.

The Alcohol Poisoning Pattern (The Most Common Killer)

• Timothy Piazza – Penn State, Beta Theta Pi (2017): A bid-acceptance night with forced drinking led to fatal falls captured on chapter cameras. A delayed 911 call resulted in death. The case led to dozens of criminal charges and Pennsylvania’s “Timothy J. Piazza Anti-Hazing Law.”
• Max Gruver – LSU, Phi Delta Theta (2017): A “Bible study” drinking game where incorrect answers mandated drinking. Mr. Gruver died with a 0.495% BAC. The Max Gruver Act made hazing a felony in Louisiana.
• Stone Foltz – Bowling Green State, Pi Kappa Alpha (2021): A pledge was forced to drink a bottle of whiskey during a “Big/Little” event. He died from alcohol poisoning. His family secured a $10 million settlement ($7M from Pi Kappa Alpha national, ~$3M from BGSU).

The Physical & Ritualized Abuse Pattern

• Chun “Michael” Deng – Baruch College, Pi Delta Psi (2013): During a “glass ceiling” ritual at a retreat, the blindfolded pledge was repeatedly tackled, suffering fatal head trauma. Help was delayed. The national fraternity was convicted of manslaughter and banned from Pennsylvania for 10 years.

The Catastrophic Injury Pattern (Non-Fatal)

• Danny Santulli – University of Missouri, Phi Gamma Delta (2021): A “pledge dad reveal” night with forced drinking left the 18-year-old with severe, permanent brain damage. He cannot walk, talk, or see and requires 24/7 care. His family settled with 22 defendants.
• Texas A&M Sigma Alpha Epsilon Incident (2021): Pledges alleged being doused with substances including industrial-strength cleaner, causing severe chemical burns requiring skin graft surgeries. The chapter was suspended, and civil lawsuits followed.

What These Cases Mean for Richland Families

These national tragedies are not distant news. They establish legal precedents on foreseeability, institutional liability, and damage valuation. They prove that juries and courts will hold powerful organizations accountable with multi-million-dollar verdicts and settlements. The same fraternities and sororities involved in these national cases have active chapters at Texas universities.

The Texas Campus Landscape: Where Richland Families Send Their Kids

Families in Richland and Navarro County often have students at a mix of local institutions, regional universities, and the state’s flagship campuses. Hazing is a risk across this spectrum.

Local & Regional Campuses for Navarro County

• Navarro College (Corsicana): As a community college, traditional residential Greek life is less prominent, but student clubs, athletic teams, and performing groups can still be venues for misconduct.
• Texas A&M University-Commerce (Hunt County): A growing regional university with active Greek life and student organizations.
• Other Regional Schools: Students may also attend Tarleton State University (Stephenville), the University of Texas at Tyler, or Texas Tech University (Lubbock).

The Major Statewide University Hubs

The vast majority of serious, institutional hazing litigation involves the large, Greek-life-heavy universities where many Texas students aspire to attend.

1. University of Houston (UH) – The Flagship Active Case

The ongoing Leonel Bermudez vs. UH & Pi Kappa Phi case is currently the most significant hazing litigation in Texas.

• The Allegations: A textbook case of modern, severe hazing—physical overexertion, psychological humiliation, forced consumption, and systematic abuse leading to rhabdomyolysis and acute kidney failure.
• Institutional Response: Pi Kappa Phi’s national headquarters suspended the Beta Nu chapter on November 6, 2025. On November 14, chapter members voted to surrender their charter, effectively shutting it down. UH called the conduct “deeply disturbing” and promised cooperation with law enforcement.
• For Richland Families: This case proves that even at a major, respected public university like UH—a common destination for Texas students—severe hazing can occur. It demonstrates the level of investigative and legal depth required to take on a university and a national fraternity simultaneously.

2. Texas A&M University – Corps Culture & Greek Life

A&M presents a unique environment with its strong Corps of Cadets tradition alongside a massive Greek system.

• Corps of Cadets Hazing: In a 2023 lawsuit, a cadet alleged degrading hazing including being bound in a “roasted pig” position with an apple in his mouth. The suit sought over $1 million, highlighting the risks within the Corps’ tradition-heavy culture.
• Fraternity Hazing: Beyond the SAE chemical burn case, other chapters have faced suspensions for alcohol hazing, physical abuse, and endangerment.
• For Richland Families: If your student is drawn to A&M’s unique culture, understanding the dual risks within both the Corps and Greek life is vital.

3. University of Texas at Austin – Public Transparency & Patterns

UT Austin operates a public Hazing Violations Log, offering a window into recurring issues.

• Documented Violations: The log shows repeated sanctions against fraternities like Pi Kappa Alpha for forced calisthenics and consumption rituals, and spirit groups like the Texas Wranglers for alcohol hazing and physical abuse.
• Sigma Alpha Epsilon Incident (2024): An Australian exchange student sued the UT SAE chapter after an alleged assault at a party left him with a dislocated leg, broken nose, and fractured tibia.
• For Richland Families: UT’s transparency is a tool. These public records can help establish a “pattern and practice” of known risks that the university and national organizations failed to curb.

4. Southern Methodist University (SMU) & Baylor University – Private School Dynamics

• SMU: As a private, affluent campus with a prominent Greek scene, SMU has faced hazing scandals, including a 2017 Kappa Alpha Order chapter suspension for paddling and forced drinking.
• Baylor: Alongside its high-profile athletic hazing history (e.g., 2020 baseball team suspensions), Baylor’s Greek life has faced ongoing scrutiny for misconduct.

The Common Thread: At every major Texas university, from public flagships to private institutions, hazing persists despite policies, training, and public relations. The organizations and the scripts are often the same.

The Greek Ecosystem in Texas: Data-Driven Reality

Hazing doesn’t happen in a vacuum. It occurs within a vast, interconnected network of legally recognized organizations. Our firm maintains the Texas Hazing Intelligence Engine, a proprietary database built from public records that maps this network. This investigative depth is what allows us to identify every potentially liable entity in a case.

Public Records: The Backbone of Greek Life in Texas

The IRS and other public filings show a complex web of organizations. Here is a snapshot of the ecosystem relevant to Texas students, including those from Richland:

IRS-Tax Exempt Greek Organizations (Sample from Texas B83 Filings):

• Kappa Sigma – Mu Camma Chapter Inc., EIN 133048786, 3007 Earl Rudder Fwy S, College Station, TX 77845
• Sigma Phi Lambda Inc., EIN 201237505, 4251 FM 2181 Ste 230 PMB 480, Corinth, TX 76210 (Beta Chapter)
• Alpha Sigma Phi Fraternity Inc., EIN 475370943, 5019 Calhoun Rd, Houston, TX 77204 (Theta Delta Chapter)
• Pi Kappa Alpha Fraternity, EIN 746064445, 1855 Highway 69 N, Nederland, TX 77627 (Epsilon Kappa Chapter)
• Beta Nu Pi Kappa Phi Fraternity Housing Corporation Inc., EIN 462267515, 10601 Big Horn Trl, Frisco, TX 75035
• Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, EIN 237279532, PO Box 2142, Prairie View, TX 77446
• Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi, EIN 900293166, 114 Henderson Hall 4233 TAMU, College Station, TX 77843 (Texas A&M University Chapter)
• Chi Omega Fraternity, EIN 740555581, 2711 Rio Grande St, Austin, TX 78705 (House Corporation)
• Sigma Chi Fraternity Epsilon Xi Chapter, EIN 746084905, 4300 Martin Luther King Blvd, Houston, TX 77204

Metro Concentration (From Cause IQ Data): The Greek network is dense in university metros. For example, the Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington metro has over 510 Greek-related organizations. The Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land metro has 188. This includes undergraduate chapters, alumni associations, honor societies, and housing corporations. When a hazing incident occurs in College Station or Austin, the organizational trail often leads to mailing addresses in Frisco, Houston, or Dallas.

Why This Data Matters for Your Case:
When hazing injures your child, the immediate reaction is to focus on the individuals in the room. Our job is to identify every organization behind them that shares legal and financial responsibility. This includes:

1. The local chapter (if incorporated).
2. The chapter’s housing corporation (which often holds insurance).
3. The alumni association or advisory board.
4. The national fraternity/sorority headquarters.
5. The national organization’s educational foundation or risk management entity.

By starting with this mapped network, we don’t have to ask “who might be responsible?” We already know the landscape and can immediately begin the investigation to establish each entity’s role and liability.

Building a Hazing Case: Evidence, Strategy & Damages

Pursuing accountability after hazing is a complex, multi-front process that requires experience, resources, and strategic insight.

The Evidence Pyramid: What Wins Cases

Modern hazing cases are won on digital evidence and institutional records.

1. Digital Communications (The Most Critical): Deleted GroupMe chats, Snapchat messages, Instagram DMs, and text threads that plan, execute, or boast about hazing. We work with digital forensics experts to recover what has been “erased.”
2. Photos & Videos: Often captured by perpetrators themselves, these provide incontrovertible proof of acts and injuries.
3. Internal Organization Documents: Pledge manuals, “tradition” binders, meeting minutes, and emails between members and national officers.
4. University Records: Prior conduct violations for the same group, emails showing complaints were ignored, Clery Act reports, and internal investigation files obtained through discovery or public records requests.
5. Medical & Psychological Records: Documents the immediate harm (ER reports, lab results for rhabdomyolysis or alcohol toxicity) and the long-term impact (therapy notes for PTSD, depression, anxiety).

Overcoming Institutional Defense Playbooks

National fraternities and universities have sophisticated defense strategies. We know how to counter them because our attorney, Mr. Lupe Peña, spent years as an insurance defense attorney for large companies. He knows their tactics from the inside.

• Defense: “It was a rogue chapter; national didn’t know.” We use national incident databases and internal memos to prove foreseeability—showing the same dangerous “traditions” have caused injuries and deaths at other chapters for years.
• Defense: “The victim consented.” Texas law (§37.155) explicitly states consent is not a defense. We demonstrate the coercive environment and power imbalance.
• Defense: “It happened off-campus, not our property.” Liability is based on control and sponsorship, not just property lines. National organizations collect dues and set rules; universities recognize the groups. The Pi Delta Psi conviction for a retreat death proves this defense fails.
• Defense: “Our insurance doesn’t cover intentional acts like hazing.” We argue that the negligent supervision by the national or university—their failure to stop known risks—is a covered claim. We identify all possible insurance policies, from homeowners’ policies of individual members to multi-million-dollar national organization coverage.

Recoverable Damages in a Hazing Lawsuit

The goal is to make the victim whole and deter future conduct. Recoverable damages include:

• Economic Damages: All past and future medical expenses (ER, hospitalization, surgery, therapy, lifelong care for catastrophic injuries), lost wages, and diminished future earning capacity.
• Non-Economic Damages: Compensation for physical pain and suffering, emotional distress, humiliation, loss of enjoyment of life, and psychological trauma (PTSD, depression).
• Wrongful Death Damages (if applicable): Funeral costs, loss of financial support, and the family’s profound loss of companionship, love, and guidance.
• Punitive Damages: In cases of particularly egregious or reckless conduct, courts may award punitive damages to punish the defendant and deter others.

Cases like Stone Foltz’s ($10M settlement) and Max Gruver’s ($6.1M verdict) show the substantial compensation juries and settlements provide for hazing deaths and catastrophic injuries.

Practical Steps for Richland Parents & Students

For Parents: A Step-by-Step Guide

1. Prioritize Safety & Health: Get immediate medical attention. Symptoms like brown urine (signaling rhabdomyolysis) or confusion after heavy drinking are medical emergencies.
2. Preserve Evidence: Help your child screenshot ALL relevant messages and photos. Do not let them delete anything out of shame or fear. Store this evidence securely.
3. Document a Timeline: Write down everything your child tells you—names, dates, locations, specific acts. Memory fades; contemporaneous notes are powerful.
4. Consult an Attorney BEFORE Reporting: While reporting to the university dean of students or campus police may be necessary, understand that the university’s primary interest is often limiting its own liability. An attorney can advise on how to navigate this process without compromising a future civil case.
5. Know Your Rights: You have the right to not speak to insurance adjusters. You have the right to have an attorney present in any meeting with university officials. You are not obligated to accept the university’s “internal resolution.”

For Students: Is This Hazing? What Can I Do?

• The Test: Are you being pressured to do something dangerous, degrading, or illegal to belong? Would you do it if there were no social consequences? If you’re hiding it from family or administrators, it’s likely hazing.
• Your Safety First: If you are in immediate danger, call 911. Most Texas schools have medical amnesty policies to protect those who call for help in alcohol emergencies.
• You Can Leave: You have the legal right to quit (de-pledge) at any time. Send a clear email or text to the chapter president stating your resignation. Inform a trusted adult, RA, or the dean of students.
• Preserve Evidence: Take screenshots. Save emails. Keep a journal.

Critical Mistakes That Can Undermine Your Case

We detail these in our video on client mistakes that can ruin your injury case.

1. Deleting digital evidence.
2. Confronting the fraternity/sorority directly, giving them time to destroy evidence and coordinate stories.
3. Signing a university “resolution” or waiver without having an attorney review it.
4. Posting details on public social media, where defense investigators will mine it for inconsistencies.
5. Waiting too long. Evidence vanishes, witnesses become uncooperative, and statutes of limitations apply. Watch our video on Texas statutes of limitations to understand the urgency.

Why Attorney911 for Texas Hazing Cases

When your family is facing the trauma of hazing, you need attorneys who are not intimidated by powerful institutions and who understand the unique complexities of these cases. The Manginello Law Firm, PLLC (Attorney911) brings a combination of experience, insider knowledge, and tenacity that few firms can match.

1. We Are Currently Litigating a Major Texas Hazing Case.
We represent Leonel Bermudez in his $10 million lawsuit against the University of Houston and Pi Kappa Phi. We are not theorizing about hazing law; we are actively in the fight, right now, against a major university and a national fraternity. This gives us current, real-world insight into the defense tactics you will face.

2. Insider Insurance Knowledge.
Our attorney, Mr. Lupe Peña (he/him), spent years as a defense attorney for a national insurance defense firm. He knows exactly how fraternity and university insurance companies value claims, fight coverage, and deploy delay tactics. He used to run their playbook; now he uses that knowledge to secure maximum recovery for victims. You can learn more about Mr. Peña’s background at https://attorney911.com/attorneys/lupe-pena/.

3. Experience Against Billion-Dollar Defendants.
Managing partner Ralph Manginello was one of the few plaintiff attorneys involved in the BP Texas City explosion litigation, taking on one of the world’s largest corporations. We are not intimidated by the deep pockets and aggressive defense teams of national fraternities and major universities. We have the resources and federal court experience to see these complex cases through.

4. Data-Driven Investigation.
Our Texas Hazing Intelligence Engine is not marketing fluff. It is a working investigative tool built from thousands of public records. It allows us to immediately identify the network of organizations behind a chapter, uncovering insurance coverage and liability that others might miss.

5. Comprehensive Damages Analysis.
We have secured multi-million-dollar settlements in wrongful death and catastrophic injury cases. We work with life-care planners, economists, and medical experts to fully document the lifetime impact of an injury, ensuring your recovery accounts for future medical needs, lost earning potential, and profound personal loss.

6. Spanish-Language Services.
Mr. Peña speaks fluent Spanish. We are committed to serving the diverse families of Texas, ensuring language is never a barrier to justice and understanding.

We operate on a contingency fee basis—you pay no attorney fees unless we win your case. We are based in Houston and serve families across Texas, including those in Richland, Navarro County, and all of North Texas.

Take the Next Step: Free, Confidential Consultation

If hazing has impacted your family, you don’t have to navigate this crisis alone. The path to accountability begins with a conversation.

Contact Attorney911 today for a free, confidential, no-obligation consultation.

• Call: 1-888-ATTY-911 (1-888-288-9911)
• Direct: (713) 528-9070
• Email: ralph@atty911.com or lupe@atty911.com
• Website: https://attorney911.com

In your consultation, we will:

• Listen compassionately to your story.
• Review any evidence you have gathered.
• Explain your legal rights and options under Texas law.
• Outline the investigation process and potential strategies.
• Answer your questions about timelines, costs, and what to expect.
• Help you make an informed decision about the best path forward for your family.

We serve families throughout Texas from our offices in Houston, Austin, and Beaumont. Whether your student was hurt at UH, Texas A&M, UT, a private university, or any other campus, we have the expertise to help. For families in Richland, Corsicana, and across Navarro County, we are here to fight for the justice and security your child deserves.

Call 1-888-ATTY-911 now. Let’s end the silence together.

Plain Text Links to Key Resources

News Coverage of the Leonel Bermudez / UH Pi Kappa Phi Hazing Lawsuit:

• Click2Houston (KPRC 2) Coverage: https://www.click2houston.com/news/local/2025/11/21/only-on-2-lawsuit-alleges-severe-hazing-at-university-of-houstons-pi-kappa-phi-chapter-fraternity/
• ABC13 (KTRK) Coverage: https://abc13.com/post/waterboarding-forced-eating-physical-punishment-lawsuit-alleges-abuse-faced-injured-pledge-uhs-pi-kappa-phi-fraternity/18186418/

Attorney911 Educational Videos:

• Client Mistakes That Can Ruin Your Injury Case: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r3IYsoxOSxY
• Is There a Statute of Limitations on My Case?: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MRHwg8tV02c
• How Do Contingency Fees Work?: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=upcI_j6F7Nc
• Can You Use Your Cellphone to Document a Legal Case?: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LLbpzrmogTs

Attorney911 Main Website & Contact:

• Main Website: https://attorney911.com
• Lupe Peña Attorney Profile: https://attorney911.com/attorneys/lupe-pena/

Legal Disclaimer

This article is provided for informational and educational purposes only. It is not legal advice and does not create an attorney–client relationship between you and The Manginello Law Firm, PLLC.

Hazing laws, university policies, and legal precedents can change. The information in this guide is current as of late 2025 but may not reflect the most recent developments. Every hazing case is unique, and outcomes depend on the specific facts, evidence, applicable law, and many other factors.

If you or your child has been affected by hazing, we strongly encourage you to consult with a qualified Texas attorney who can review your specific situation, explain your legal rights, and advise you on the best course of action for your family.

The Manginello Law Firm, PLLC / Attorney911
Houston, Austin, and Beaumont, Texas
Call: 1-888-ATTY-911 (1-888-288-9911)
Direct: (713) 528-9070 | Cell: (713) 443-4781
Website: https://attorney911.com
Email: ralph@atty911.com | Se habla Español: lupe@atty911.com