Hazing & Criminal Penalties
The blog has previously discussed the crime of conspiracy — more information can be found here. As for the crime of hazing, Mississippi law states that a person is guilty of hazing in the first degree when "in the course of another person's initiation into or affiliation with any organization, he intentionally or recklessly engages in conduct which creates a substantial risk of physical injury to such other person or a third person and thereby causes such injury." A person is guilty of hazing in the second degree when "in the course of another person's initiation into or affiliation with any organization, he intentionally or recklessly engages in conduct which creates a substantial risk of physical injury to such other person or a third person." Penalties range from a $1,000.00 fine to 6 months in jail and a $2,000.00 fine.University police served indictments Thursday on 10 students. The 11th was out of state and will be served next week, police said.
They are charged in an Aug. 28 incident at the Kappa Sigma fraternity house during a "Little Sister" initiation. Each is charged with conspiracy to commit hazing, two counts of first-degree hazing and one count of second-degree hazing...
One of the victims spent more than two weeks in intensive care at Forrest General Hospital. The second was treated and released.
The mother of the victim who remained at the hospital said her 19-year-old daughter attended the initiation at Kappa Sigma. She said part of the initiation included syrup poured in her daughter's hair and vodka poured down her daughter's throat with her head tilted back. Her daughter, a sophomore from Waveland, had a blood-alcohol content of 0.47, which is more than five times the legal limit.
The university revoked Kappa Sigma fraternity's charter and closed the house on campus a week after the incident.
The Forrest County grand jury met last month, District Attorney Jon Mark Weathers said. An indictment is not made public until those charged are officially notified or arrested.
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