Charlottesville, VA: The University of Virginia A suspends fraternity after a student falls into coma from a hazing incident
An article in The Jefferson Independent, the student newspaper of UVA, detailed an incident involving a Kappa Sigma pledge who is now in a coma after consuming alcohol and falling down a staircase, sustaining a head injury.
Leo Brown, the vice president of external affairs for Kappa Sigma, issued a statement indicating the fraternity’s awareness of the incident. He emphasized that any member caught violating the Fraternity’s Code of Conduct, which explicitly prohibits hazing, will face consequences.
The UVA chapter of Kappa Sigma is currently under suspension while the university conducts an investigation.
70 students nationwide have lost their lives in hazing incidents linked to college fraternities since 2000. Adam Oakes, a 19-year-old Virginia Commonwealth University freshman, passed away in 2021 due to alcohol poisoning while pledging the VCU chapter of Delta Chi. Approximately one year later, Virginia passed a new law that mandates hazing-prevention training and education for all college students in the state.