Why did no one help Timothy Piazza?

That’s the frequently repeated question as more and more disturbing and graphic details surface regarding the 19-year-old Penn State sophomore’s tragic hazing death.

According to a document released Friday by Centre County District Attorney, Stacy Parks Miller, the brothers of Beta Theta Pi waited 12 hours before calling for medical help after Piazza fell 15 feet, head first, down a flight of basement stairs during a pledging ceremony.

Here’s what you need to know from the grand jury findings into the death of Penn State sophomore Timothy Piazza: https://t.co/RSqrK46UOS pic.twitter.com/Jj6cAvKPaB

— The Daily Collegian (@DailyCollegian) May 8, 2017

After reading through the 81-page court document–that is largely based on surveillance video tape from inside the fraternity house and text messages between brothers–it’s clear that the fraternity brothers had multiple chances to possibly save Piazza’s life, but instead they for the most part did nothing–in fact, they likely made his injuries worse.

On February 2, Piazza participated in a ritual that fraternity members refer to as “the gauntlet.” Pledges were forced to go to a series of alcohol stations where they had to guzzle vodka, shotgun beers, drink from wine bags, and play multiple rounds of beer pong–drinking four to five drinks in a two-minute span.

By 10:40 p.m., Piazza is seen on the fraternity’s security camera extremely intoxicated, hunched over, and staggering. Roughly five minutes later he is seen moving out of the camera’s sightline, then a fraternity brother points “agitatedly in the direction of the basement stairs.”

In a group message to the brothers, one of them wrote: “Also Tim Piazza might actually be a problem. He fell 15 feet down a flight of stairs, hair-first, going to need help.

No one called an ambulance.

Instead, the members of Beta Theta Pi are seen carrying Piazza’s limp, seemingly unconscious, body to a nearby couch, where they then strip him of his shirt. A large visible bruise can be seen developing on his abdomen.

Kordel Davis, a newly initiated brother, testified that after seeing Piazza on the couch, he screamed repeatedly for someone to call 911, and pleaded with his fellow brother to get help. But they ignored him and called him “overdramatic.”

Still, no one called an ambulance.

The brothers poured liquid on Piazza’s face to try to wake him up, slapped him in the face, and struck his bruised abdomen. They even attached a weighted backpack to his back to prevent him from rolling over and possibly choking on his own vomit.

Eventually, around 3:22 a.m., Piazza attempts to stand up clutching his abdomen, but falls backwards and strikes his head on the hardwood floor. Thirty minutes later he tries to stand again and falls face down on the floor. He staggers to the lobby and falls head first into an iron railing before falling to the floor.

At 5:15 a.m., a fraternity brother steps over Piazza’s body on his way to the kitchen for a drink of water.

He didn’t call for help.

Piazza would eventually fall down the basement stairs once more, striking his head yet again. It wasn’t until 10:48 a.m. that someone eventually called 911. But by then, the damage was done. He died the next morning at the hospital.

Doctors would later find 4 liters–roughly 80 percent of a human body’s total blood supply–of dark, old blood in Piazza’s abdomen. He suffered multiple traumatic brain injuries, a fracture at the base of his skull, and suffered respiratory failure as a result of his severe head trauma.

Penn State students and State College community members gather in memory of Timothy Piazza (https://t.co/Ww2hYi1PLv) via: @PennLive pic.twitter.com/u3RJIHGisF

— Cameron Hart (@Cameron_Hart_) February 13, 2017

Authorities announced more than 850 charges for Beta Theta Pi and 18 of its fraternity members involved in the “pledge night” that resulted in Piazza’s death.

Eight of the fraternity members were charged with involuntary manslaughter. The other charges include: aggravated assault, simple assault, recklessly endangering another person, hazing, furnishing alcohol to minors, unlawful acts relative to liquor, tampering with evidence, consumption of alcohol by a minor, and disorderly conduct.

The sad thing is, this death could have been prevented. If one person had stood up to the group and gotten help, Piazza, who went by Tim, could still be alive today. Instead, his injuries were trivialized by students who were concerned more about themselves than helping someone who was trying to be their “brother.”

The Penn State chapter of the fraternity has since been disbanded, and the school’s president has threatened to shut down all Greek life on campus.

Alexis Evans

Alexis Evans is an Assistant Editor at Law Street and a Buckeye State native. She has a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism and a minor in Business from Ohio University. Contact Alexis at aevans@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post Why Didn’t Anyone Help Timothy Piazza? appeared first on Law Street.

Many legal clinics have popped up in recent years in order to provide free, or inexpensive, legal advice to lower income people who need it. For example, just a few weeks ago, I wrote about the proposed requirements for law students in California to work for free in the many legal aid clinics throughout the state. So while these types of clinics are in no way novel, the idea to combine one with a medical clinic is. But that’s exactly what Penn State University’s Dickinson School of Law is working on.

Dickinson School of Law has announced that it plans to partner up with a local medical facility to create a medical-legal clinic set to open in 2016. One possible partner for this project is the Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, however, nothing has been decided officially.

The mastermind behind the new medical-legal clinic is Medha D. Makhlouf, a current attorney at the Central West Justice Center in Worchester, Massachusetts. She is slated to join the Dickinson School of Law faculty on July 1 as the medical-legal facilities founding director and a clinical professor of law. She will be in charge of supervising the planning of the new clinic.

Through her work in Worchester, Makhlouf has come to realize that low income clients’ medical issues are often related to their underlying legal issues. She hopes that this project will foster a collaborative environment amongst the medical and legal communities, allowing clients a place where they can improve both their medical and their legal situations at the same time. She said that “It’s not just about lawyers and health care providers using their respective skills — it’s more about the collaboration. Often health care and law are intertwined.”

Makhlouf explained that “many clients are referred to me for an isolated problem, like maybe their food stamps were terminated, then I’ll find that there’s two or three more underlying legal issues that have been negatively affecting their health.” Other examples of this problem are conditions in a home environment that exacerbate asthma or a client who doesn’t have health insurance because of their immigration status.

The medical facility will also benefit from this partnership, as “not all medical problems can be solved in an exam room or with a prescription.”

Dickinson Law Interim Dean Gary Gilden is enthusiastic about the benefits that the clinic could bring to both the community and the law students. He said that “from an educational standpoint, this puts law students in a medical environment. This opens them up to educational opportunities they wouldn’t normally have.”

Law students who participate in the clinic will have the opportunity to work with staff from both the law school and the partnering medical facility. Makhlouf has shared that this opportunity will allow students to engage in experimental learning, where they will be able to develop knowledge, skills, and values from experiences outside a traditional classroom environment.

In addition to the benefits of working directly in the clinic, Dickinson students will participate in joint classes with medical students and students studying in other health-related disciplines. Makhlouf will also be teaching classes such as immigration law and law and medicine to help students gain some context and background on the issues that they might deal with in the clinic.

Brittany Alzfan

Brittany Alzfan is a student at the George Washington University majoring in Criminal Justice. She was a member of Law Street’s founding Law School Rankings team during the summer of 2014. Contact Brittany at staff@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post Dickinson School of Law Plans Innovative Medical-Legal Clinic appeared first on Law Street.

Racist chants, hotel trashing, and naked photos of unconscious women. These things have become seemingly synonymous with college fraternities after a slew of scandals in recent weeks thrust Greek Life even further under the nation’s microscope.

First, the University of Oklahoma’s Sigma Alpha Epsilon chapter was caught on tape singing a racist chant referencing lynching. The scandal resulted in the chapter being shut down, and some of their members were even expelled.

Then news of the University of Michigan’s Sigma Alpha Mu fraternity racking up almost half a million dollars worth of damages at a northern Michigan ski resort in January surfaced. That’s one hell of a hotel party that would definitely put most rockers to shame. Their fraternity was also disbanded.

Michigan’s Sigma Alpha Mu frat has been permanently disbanded for ski resort rampage http://t.co/W0RmBkMyFI pic.twitter.com/Tv0E2efHwl

— David Nelson (@DavidNelsonNews) March 18, 2015

Now Penn State’s chapter of Kappa Delta Rho is following suit with its own form of debauchery. A secret “invite only” Facebook group was discovered that served as a hub for photos of naked and passed out women, hazing, and records of drug sales. Not good Penn State, not good.

Nude photo scandal rocks Penn State fraternity: http://t.co/3XVSdei1hI pic.twitter.com/yB79OldNFg — AOL.com (@AOL) March 17, 2015

The page had a total of 144 active members including current fraternity members and some alums. CNN reported,

The former frat member who tipped off police told authorities that a second Facebook page called ‘2.0’ allegedly had been created around April 2014 following complaints from a woman whose photo was posted on it, the affidavit said. The earlier version of the page was titled ‘Covert Business Transactions.’

The frat has been suspended for one year by the Penn State Interfraternity Council, while university officials continue to investigate the incident. Even with its suspension, some are still unhappy with the way Penn State is dealing with the scandal.

According to CNN, David Clohessy, director of the St. Louis-based Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, or SNAP, said in a statement the latest allegations call into question the university’s handling of sex crime reports. Clohessy said,

For years now, Penn State enthusiasts have repeatedly reassured everyone who’d listen that the university’s problematic culture about sex crimes had been reformed. The latest allegations — that a fraternity members posted nude pictures of women on Facebook, some of whom appeared to be sleeping or passed out — raise serious doubts about those claims

…The Kappa Delta Rho is a wake up call. But the Sandusky case should have been a wake up call too.

These scandals have Greek Life members nationwide worried what will be next. Organizations have even begun investigating their own chapters just to be safe. It is unfortunate to see the reputations of these organizations being tarnished by the actions of a few, especially when they were created to be pillars of leadership and philanthropy within the community. Instead fraternities are being referred to as offensive, discriminatory, and sexually abusive, or in other words, a PR consultant’s worst nightmare. Cleaning up this image won’t be easy, especially if more scandals continue to surface, but holding these boys responsible is a good first step.

Alexis Evans

Alexis Evans is an Assistant Editor at Law Street and a Buckeye State native. She has a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism and a minor in Business from Ohio University. Contact Alexis at aevans@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post Greek Fraternities’ Swift Fall From Grace: What’s Next? appeared first on Law Street.

In 2013, the Pennsylvania State University Law School proposed splitting up its program into two separate, specialized schools–the Dickinson School of Law and Penn State Law. That plan has finally been approved by the American Bar Association and will be moving forward in 2015. Though the school’s law program had already been geographically divided between the State College and Carlisle, PA campuses, this change will establish two independently accredited law schools that are both still affiliated with Penn State.

After about a year of ABA review, the approval came with only a few, not-so-academic, suggestions. The ABA board actually offered construction and logistics advice, such as a suggestion to move the admissions office from the ground floor to the first floor, improving accessibility. In an interview last week, Interim Dean Gary Gildin remarked that he welcomed the constructive ideas from the ABA Board as an outside perspective that has had extensive experience with the creation of new schools.

The decision from the ABA was pretty unique. Unlike the accreditation of other new law schools, which typically includes a two-year probationary period, both of Penn State’s schools received “full and immediate” accreditation, according to Interim Dean Gildin. Back when Penn State originally chose to operate on two campuses, the ABA gave both accreditation. Therefore, the separation was not a very difficult process.

Both separately accredited schools will offer three-year J.D. and graduate law degree programs under The Dickinson School of Law of The Pennsylvania State University, and will draw on the unique location opportunities of each campus. What will be known as Penn State Law, located on the State College campus, will allow students to collaborate with the many different departments of Penn State’s liberal arts, science, education, nursing, and business schools. The Dickinson School of Law in Carlisle will retain its name but will use its proximity to Washington, D.C. and the Penn State Hershey Medical Center to focus on government and health care specialties.

Under Penn State’s old “one school, two campuses” theory, students were offered identical first-year curriculums at both campuses. In the following years, students had the option of continuing at their original campus or moving to the other in order to access different opportunities like special clinics or classes. While switching will become more difficult, the campuses will still be well connected. Penn State has long boasted how both campuses are connected by highly advanced communications technology. This has given them the ability to host audiovisual telecommunications between both locations; a characteristic that the interim deans have promised will stay the same even after the split.

This plan has seen little resistance from law societies, students, and faculty, despite the fact that each school will have a different dean and administration. According to my interview with the two interim deans, the catalyst for the split came from their appreciation of the rapidly changing legal market. According to Interim Dean James Houck, in recognition of rapidly declining admissions across the board, Penn State’s law program endeavored to “most effectively deliver what we have to offer students.” Dean Gildin explained that the separation of schools will be like a form of “home-rule.” Each one will have the opportunity to be more nimble, agile, and reactive.

It’s easy to see the merit in producing two more specialized schools that can easily adapt to the fast paced, constantly changing legal job market. Currently, there is just one administration, so any alterations or amendments must be checked and cleared between two different campuses. This “two schools” plan, which will begin in 2015, creates more independence for each program. And rather than being forced to find a academic middle ground between two schools, each program will be able to let its strengths shine.

This is yet another attempt among law schools across the nation to solve their waning enrollment statistics. While some schools like the Charleston School of Law are being bought out by corporate, for-profit, conglomerates like InfiLaw, others like Penn State are devising innovative alternatives. Not only is Penn State retaining its individuality in the face of a downturn in the law school market, but it is actually distinguishing itself in an industry that is definitely in need of such creative ingenuity.

—

Erika Bethmann (@EBethmann) is a New Jersey native and a Washingtonian in the making. She is passionate about travel and international policy, and is expanding her knowledge of the world at George Washington University’s Elliot School of International Affairs. Contact Erika at staff@LawStreetMedia.com.

Featured image courtesy of [Penn State via Flickr]

Erika Bethmann

Erika Bethmann is a New Jersey native and a Washingtonian in the making. She is passionate about travel and international policy, and is expanding her knowledge of the world at George Washington University’s Elliot School of International Affairs. Contact Erika at staff@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post Law School Disruptor of the Week: Penn State’s Two Law Schools appeared first on Law Street.

St. Patrick’s Day is next week, but the celebrations are already beginning in a lot of places around the United States. Beginning in revelry, that is, and ending in arrests. At the University of Massachusetts, Amherst last weekend, 73 people were arrested at a premature “Blarney Blowout.” Four officers were injured in the process of trying to shut down the party, which consisted of about 4,000 people. There were drunken fights, people throwing broken bottles, sexual assaults, and property damage.

UMass Amherst isn’t the only university that traditionally has a St. Paddy’s Day-inspired problem. Penn State University has an informal State Paddy’s Day each year, and it’s much in the same vein. It’s usually around the first weekend in March, and has been an annual celebration since 2007. It’s gotten so bad that the University has started to offer money to restaurants and bars to not open, or at least to not sell booze.

Indiana University of Pennsylvania is having problems this year as well. Neither the University nor the Police have yet released how many students were arrested, but a University spokesman assured the press that the violators will be punished appropriately.

For years, St. Paddy’s day has been associated with drunken revelry, especially throughout the United States. But how and why? After all, it is named after Saint Patrick, and was originally a Catholic feast day. How has that turned into this?

And how many people actually know the real history of the holiday?

It is believed that St. Patrick was originally a slave taken from Britain to Ireland. He eventually escaped and became a cleric, followed by a Bishop. March 17 is his feast day and is thought to be the day of his death. Many St. Patrick’s day symbols also have religious significance. For example, the shamrock was used it to illustrate the idea of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost in Catholic theology. Others have evolved over time. For example, the color green didn’t become associated with St. Patrick’s Day until the 19th century. Traditionally, St. Patrick’s color was blue. And St. Patrick’s Day parades were never really a thing in Ireland, the first one of those was actually in Boston.

Of course most of the people celebrating St. Paddy’s day wouldn’t be able to tell you that, although not for lack of trying. Here are some drunk people trying to answer St. Paddy’s day questions. They do a fabulous job.