9 charged in death of FSU frat pledge
S. Fla. man drank heavily at party
Nine Florida State University fraternity members were charged with hazing Wednesday in the death of a 20-year-old student from South Florida.
Andrew Coffey, of Lighthouse Point, a junior and pledge at Pi Kappa Phi, drank a lethal amount of bourbon and malt liquor at an off-campus party, authorities say.
More details from the party were released as nine members of the now-closed Pi Kappa Phi FSU chapter face felony hazing charges in Coffey’s death.
He was found unresponsive and died of alcohol poisoning Nov. 3, following the party the night before.
The state medical examiner said Coffey had a blood alcohol level of .447 at the time of the autopsy.
Investigators, who ultimately took the case to a grand jury, said in the report that even though two frater-
nity members remained sober to monitor the party, no one monitored the amount of alcohol anyone was consuming or stopped minors from drinking. Investigators added that this created “an environment and expectation of drinking in excess.”
The nine members charged with “College Hazing-Cause Injury or Death” — a third-degree felony — are Luke E. Kluttz and Clayton M. Muehlstein, both 22; Brett A. Birmingham and Anthony Petagine, both 20; and Conner R. Ravelo, Christopher M. Hamlin, Anthony Oppenheimer, John B. “Jack” Ray and Kyle J. Bauer, all 21. The charge is punishable by up to five years in prison.
Ravelo was Coffey’s “big brother” in the fraternity. The other eight are members of the fraternity’s executive council, which organized the party.
Three days after Coffey’s death, Florida State suspended its fraternities and sororities with no timetable on when they would be reinstated. Pi Kappa Phi’s national office has closed the FSU chapter.
Florida State University President John Thrasher said in a statement that “these arrests are the first step in seeking justice for Andrew and his loved ones, and they will inform us on where we need to place our focus as we proceed. We hope all members and alumni of our Greek organizations are paying attention.”
State attorney Jack Campbell said he has been in contact with the Coffey family about the charges.
“The circumstances are unique. There have not been many felony hazing cases brought forth in Florida,” he said. “There was criminal conduct and we wanted to make the best decision on what to pursue.”
The fraternity’s “Big Brother Night” party was held at an off-campus home to skirt university and national chapter policies that prohibit underage drinking.
The party, where pledges were introduced to their big brothers, included drinking large amounts of liquor straight from the bottle.
Ravelo, who was 20 at the time, admitted to investigators that he used another person’s ID to buy alcohol for the party, including a fifth (750 ml) of Wild Turkey 101 bourbon and two bottles of a malt beverage.
Ravelo, who was interviewed by Tallahassee police investigators the day Coffey died, said Coffey consumed the contents of the bottles and passed out on a futon outside the house. He was taken into the living room and placed on a couch, where he was described as “snoring loudly” while others played pool.
Ravelo returned home after placing Coffey on the couch. A fellow pledge tried to awaken Coffey the next morning and found that Coffey had no pulse. Phone records show the pledge called and texted five fraternity members before calling 911.
Coffey graduated from Pompano Beach High in 2015. Before he left to pursue a degree in civil engineering at Florida State, he was a swimmer, varsity football player and a member of the the junior ROTC program, a school counselor said.