FAMU Settles With Family of Drum Major Who Died After Hazing
Florida A&M University has reached a settlement with the family of a drum major who died after being hazed by fellow band members.
A university spokesman says the $1.1 million settlement of the negligence lawsuit by Robert Champion's family was reached Friday.
FAMU spokeswoman Lisa Brock says the settlement terms include both monetary and nonmonetary terms.
Champion — of Decatur, Georgia — died after band members pummeled him with fists and mallets aboard a bus parked outside an Orlando hotel in November 2011. The hazing ritual, known as "Crossing Bus C," was carried out after FAMU band members had performed at an annual football game with a rival.
Champion's family says the university should have taken stronger measures to crack down on hazing by band members.
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Watch: Hazing at HBCUs: Students Dying to Be Accepted in the video below.
(Photo: Joseph Brown II/The Tampa Tribune/AP Photo)
