May 20, 2006
http://www.tallahassee.com/apps/pbcs...65/1010/NEWS01
Alleged fraternity hazing victim still being punished, father says
Former Kappa Alpha Psi pledge lost scholarship, will not return to FAMU
By Daniela Velazquez
DEMOCRAT STAFF WRITER
The father of a Florida A&M sophomore who was allegedly beaten in a hazing
incident involving the Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity in February is still
incensed.
In a statement released Friday through the Knowles & Randolph law firm,
Mark Jones said his son is still being punished for reporting the crime.
"Because of that, he is looked at as a traitor, a snitch," Jones said. He
has retained the firm in the case.
Marcus Jones, of Decatur, Ga., "does not intend on returning (to FAMU) and
no longer lives in Tallahassee," said Cecka Green, family spokeswoman.
Because he did not complete classes this spring semester, Jones has lost
his partial-tuition academic scholarship, Green said.
Green said the family is evaluating if they will take legal action against
the fraternity regionally or nationally.
"I don't know that it's been determined who would be the target of legal
litigation," Green said.
Jones' father reported the incident in March. Marcus Jones, 19, had surgery
March 7 for injuries to his buttocks, and he had a ruptured eardrum,
according to a report by the Leon County Sheriff's Office.
Senior Michael Morton, 23, senior Brian Bowman, 23, junior Cory Gray, 22,
sophomore Marcus B. Hughes, 20, and pharmacy student Jason Harris, 25, were
arrested on charges of hazing on April 10. They are the state's first
arrests on such charges after a June 2005 law made hazing a third-degree
felony. The undergraduate fraternity chapter has been suspended from campus
until 2013 .
The five students are currently suspended from the university. Four of the
five have had school hearings to try and reach an agreement to determine if
they will be reinstated, Bill Waters, attorney for the men, said Friday.
The final hearing will be at the end of the month.
The five students did not take their final exams and have not registered
for summer classes, Waters said. If an agreement is reached, the students
intend to enroll in the fall.
The Sheriff's Office does not anticipate any more hazing arrests, said
Capt. Rob Swearingen. "We have exhausted all our leads." Some witnesses
interviewed could still face perjury charges.
For Jones' case, "that investigation is going to have run its course
through the court system," Swearingen said.
Copyright ©2006 Tallahassee Democrat.
Kappa Alphi Psi and hazing
it's just not worth it in the name of tradition?
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