Phi Kappa Psi At Washington And Lee Removed For Three Years Following Tasing Incident

Bogey Wells11 years ago

I find it slightly amusing that I came across this story when I did. I was about 12 minutes into my eighth COPS episode of the evening, and a meth addict had just found himself on the receiving end of a handheld lightning bolt. He wasn’t the first to receive a few free volts courtesy of the Las Vegas Police Department, and he certainly won’t be the last. The officer who tased said addict had ample reason to do so, which is more than what can be said for most fraternity-related taser incidents across the nation (that’s one of the most ridiculous sentences I’ve ever typed).

I’ve been tased. It didn’t feel great, but it gave me a semi-interesting story to tell when I’m intoxicated enough to creatively embellish the context in which I was tased. Unlike a certain pledge at Washington and Lee University, my tasing was entirely voluntary. Also unlike a certain pledge at Washington and Lee, I didn’t run to university officials.

The alleged incident occurred on March 5th at an off-campus Phi Kappa Psi event. At some point, an active pulled out a taser and a downward spiral quickly developed.

From The Roanoke Times:

A fraternity member used a Taser on a new member and intimidated others with it on March 5, according to a letter sent by W&L President Kenneth Ruscio to all students, faculty and staff Wednesday. Initially, the Interfraternity Council suspended the fraternity for a year and a half after reviewing the findings of a campus public safety investigation; however, Ruscio tacked on another year and a half, calling the case “clear physical abuse” and “potentially even more dangerous.”

“It was a specific act that occurred in a climate of intimidation that existed throughout the fraternity’s new member education program,” he said in the letter.

A kid gets tased and the entire chapter finds themselves inactive for the next three years? Come on now. Unless there are unreported charges, the punishment doesn’t exactly fit the crime.

In yet another example of the dangers of technology, the school was apparently tipped off after an anonymous hazing report was filed with the university through their confidential online reporting system developed by the student affairs department several years ago.

The last incident of hazing at Washington and Lee occurred in 1998. Just for shits and giggles, I’ll share the incredibly descriptive recap of the incident.

Ten members of the Kappa Alpha fraternity were suspended for a year for hazing pledges during an initiation that included pledges being shocked with an electric cattle prod and made to wear plastic garbage bag “diapers” fastened with duct tape while they were forced to eat beans and laxatives.

Sounds like a helluva time. .

[via The Roanoke Times]

Image via Wikimedia