Thirty-three people connected with hazing incidents involving the Florida A & M University (FAMU) marching band have been charged by Florida law enforcement officials with violating the state’s tough anti-hazing law, a state attorney in Orlando announced Wednesday.
Thirteen people, 11 of whom face third degree felony charges, were charged in connection with the Nov. 19 hazing death of 26 year-old FAMU drum major Robert Champion. Felony charges carry minimum prison sentences of six years, if convicted.
At least 20 other people face misdemeanor charges stemming from other FAMU hazing incidents unrelated to Champion’s death, said Lawson Lamar, the state attorney for Florida’s Ninth Judicial Circuit. It includes Orange County and Osceola counties.
Lamar did not name any of the suspects, detail the charges against each person, or clarify whether any were current students, employees at the university, or alumni who were on his list of those being charged Wednesday. He indicated more actions could be forthcoming and urged people with any knowledge of hazing at the school to come forward.
By early Wednesday evening, several Florida media outlets were reporting the arrest in Tallahassee (where FAMU is located) of two people –former FAMU drum major Rikki Wills and a Caleb Jackson – on felony hazing charges.
The long-awaited announcement of charges in connection with Champion’s death comes on the heels of confirmation by FAMU’s Vice President for Legal Affairs and General Counsel Avery McKnight that the university had taken “appropriate employment action” against two professors in the FAMU music department.
Later confirmed as dismissals, the action against the two professors, identified in Florida media reports as 38-year-old Anthony Simons III and 37 year-old Diron Holloway, stemmed from a finding they had been involved in hazing activities involving band members. It could not be determined if either of the teachers was on the list of people Florida authorities are charging with violating the state’s hazing law.
