Son’s loss propels parents on crusade against hazing
Universities clamp down on dangerous frat rituals
If she had one last chance to speak to her son, Evelyn Piazza would tell him his family loves him — and “Don’t go.”
Don’t go to the party that killed him a year ago at Penn State University’s Beta Theta Pi fraternity house. There, Tim Piazza was served 18 drinks in roughly an hour and a half during a pledge initiation called “The Gauntlet.”
Tim, 19, would fall several times, including down a flight of stairs, causing him numerous traumatic injuries. Members didn’t get him medical attention until the next morning. He died Feb. 4, 2017.
“It doesn’t get better,” Evelyn Piazza said. “It hurts just as much now as it did a year ago.”
Last year was a historic one for American fraternities. Piazza’s death was the first of four pledge deaths across the country, prompting changes at those schools. A handful of other large universities placed bans on Greek life and fraternities related to hazing, sexual misconduct and alcohol abuse.
These blanket shutdowns — imposed by both students and administrators — never happened before, said Hank Nuwer, a journalism professor at Franklin College in Indiana, who has studied hazing deaths for decades. He
said they’re an indicator that administrators, fearful of blowback, are on their heels, and students are taking notice of dangerous fraternities.
The Piazzas are at the forefront of the anti-hazing movement. Their son’s name is synonymous with tragedy, and like so many parents before them, they’ve picked up the torch.
“We didn’t have a choice, but now we really feel obligated to speak out and make sure this doesn’t happen again so that Tim saves lives,” Evelyn Piazza said. “Clearly, this situation has put us into a spot where we have to carry this burden, and we have to see it through.”
On what would have been their younger son’s 20th birthday, the Piazzas tried to distract themselves with friends and family. On Christmas Day, they didn’t open presents until the afternoon. “We just didn’t care,” Jim, Evelyn’s husband, said.
‘There shouldn’t be a next person’
Though the grief hasn’t worn off, there’s resolve in the parents from Hunterdon County, N.J.
“This is an incredible pain. It’s an incredible way for your child to die, and if we don’t speak up, then we leave it to the next person,” Evelyn said. “There shouldn’t be a next person.”
Months after their son’s death, Jim and Evelyn experienced what other parents had: the sad realization that the tragedies keep happening.
On Sept. 14, Max Gruver, 18, died after a pledge event at Louisiana State University’s Phi Delta Theta fraternity.
On Nov. 3, Florida State University’s Andrew Coffey, 20, drank an entire bottle of Wild Turkey 101 bourbon and died after Pi Kappa Phi’s “Big Brother Night.”
On Nov. 14, pledge Matthew McKinley Ellis, 20, was found dead in an apartment after an off-campus Phi Kappa Psi event at Texas State University.
“It’s very deflating and disappointing,” Evelyn said. “We feel like we failed in getting our message out because obviously, those people weren’t listening.”
Criminal case
Prosecutors have filed criminal charges against 26 people, plus the fraternity, in Tim Piazza’s death. Some defendants face counts of manslaughter and aggravated assault.
In November, 12 people were charged after prosecutors uncovered surveillance footage.
The Piazzas said they hadn’t watched the fraternity house’s surveillance video but encouraged Penn State officials to view it.
The investigation is in the hands of Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro after Centre County District Attorney Bernard Cantorna announced he had a conflict.
At least two of the defendants claimed they were oblivious to Piazza’s condition the night of the hazing. In August, attorney Frank Fina said his client, chapter President Brendan Young, “wasn’t there through the whole night.”
Leonard Ambrose, who represents Joe Sala, 19, a former Beta Theta Pi member, said his client didn’t know anyone had fallen down the stairs.
“He believed that this pledge acceptance was permissible because, if it wasn’t, it wouldn’t go on,” he said.
Every one of the defendants played a role, said Tom Kline, the Piazza family’s attorney.
“There were a lot of people involved who had pieces to this larger puzzle,” he said. “Each one of them knowing and understanding that they were involved in hazing.”
“I’m not happy with those individuals,” Jim Piazza said “They did bad and illegal things that killed our son.”
‘It’s a joke’
Aside from placing a permanent ban on Beta Theta Pi, Penn State announced sweeping changes to its Greek system after Piazza’s death, including moving all Greek disciplinary actions under the university. Previously, such actions were handled by the independent and student-run Interfraternity Council.
Thursday, Penn State President Eric Barron announced the university will host a gathering of university leaders in April to “explore ideas for cooperative action” regarding fraternities.
“Much remains to be done,” Barron wrote. “The memory of Timothy Piazza deserves nothing less than our collective action.”
Jim Piazza doesn’t have faith the university has implemented all of its promised changes.
“It’s a joke,” he said. “They’re a lot of talk. They’ve done some good things, but there’s a lot more for them to do.”