Hazing Information

Hazing is a plague in our society. Incidents are on the rise — particularly among younger and younger kids committing increasingly more violent acts. Take a look at some statistics:

• 1.5 million high school students are hazed each year; 47% of students came to college already having experienced hazing.
• 55% of college students involved in clubs, teams and organizations experience hazing.
• Alcohol consumption, humiliation, isolation, sleep-deprivation, and sexual acts are hazing practices common across all types of student groups.
• 40% of athletes who reported being involved in hazing behaviors report that a coach or advisor was aware of the activity; 22% report that the coach was involved.
• 2 in 5 students say they are aware of hazing taking place on their campus. More than 1 in 5 report that they witnessed hazing personally.
• In 95% of cases where students identified their experience as hazing, they did not report the events to campus officials.
• Nine out of ten students who have experienced hazing behavior in college do not consider themselves to have been hazed.
• 36% of students say they would not report hazing primarily because “there’s no one to tell,” and 27% feel that adults won’t handle it right.
• As of February 12, 2010, the number of recorded hazing/pledging/rushing-related deaths in fraternities and sororities stands at 96 — 90 males and 6 females.
• 82% of deaths from hazing involve alcohol.

*Data cited from the national study Hazing in View: Students at Risk conducted by Elizabeth Allan, Ph.D. and Mary Madden, Ph.D. from the University of Maine. The full report of both the pilot and complete national study are available at:http://www.hazingstudy.org.

(a) Hazing is any action or situation that recklessly or intentionally endangers the mental or physical health and/or safety of a student for purposes including but not limited to initiation or admission into, or association or affiliation with, any registered student organization or other group whether or not officially recognized
by the University. Hazing which violates Florida Statutes may result in felony charges. A student may commit an act of hazing whether the student is a prospective, current, or former member of the organization or group. The actions of active, associate, new and/or prospective members, former members, or alumni
of a registered student organization or other student group may be considered hazing under this rule.

(b) Hazing includes brutality of a physical nature such as whipping, beating, branding, forced calisthenics, exposure to the elements; forced consumption of any food, liquid, liquor, drug, or other substances; or other forced elements; or other forced activity which could adversely affect the mental or physical health or safety of the individual.

(c) Hazing includes any activity which could subject the individual to extreme mental stress such as sleep deprivation, forced exclusion from social contact, forced conduct that could result in extreme embarrassment, or any other activity that could adversely affect the mental health or dignity of the individual.

(d) Hazing includes forcing, pressuring, coercing, or requiring the violation of University policies, federal, state, or local law.

(e) Hazing includes soliciting a person to commit or being actively involved in the planning of any act of hazing as defined above where the act of hazing creates a substantial risk of physical injury or death to the person(s) hazed.

(f) It is not defense to an allegation of hazing that:
1. the consent of the victim had been obtained;
2. the conduct or activity that resulted in the death or injury of a person was not part of any official organizational event or otherwise sanctioned or approved by the student organization; or
3. the conduct or activity that resulted in the death or injury of a person was not done as a condition of membership into a student organization.

(g) Hazing does not include customary athletic events or other similar contests or competitions or any activity or conduct that furthers a legal and legitimate objective.

UCF-5.012 Organizational Rules of Conduct, Section 10 Hazing (a) – (h)
(a) Hazing is any action or situation that recklessly or intentionally endangers the mental or physical health and/or safety of a student for purposes including but not limited to initiation or admission into, or association or affiliation with, any registered student organization or other group whether or not officially recognized by the University. Hazing which violates Florida Statutes may result in felony charges. A student may commit an act of hazing whether the student is a prospective, current, or former member of the organization or group. The actions of active, associate, new and/or prospective members, former members, or alumni of a registered student organization or other student group may be considered hazing under this rule.

(b) Hazing includes brutality of a physical nature such as whipping, beating, branding, forced calisthenics, exposure to the elements; forced consumption of any food, liquor, liquid, drug, or other substances; or other forced elements; or other forced activity which could adversely affect the mental or physical health or safety of the individual.

(c) Hazing includes any activity that could subject the individual to extreme mental or physical stress such as sleep deprivation, forced exclusion from social contact, forced conduct that could result in extreme embarrassment, or any other activity that could adversely affect the mental or physical health or dignity of the individual.

(d) Hazing includes forcing, pressuring, coercing, or requiring the violation of University policies, federal, state, or local law.

(e) Hazing includes soliciting a person to commit or being actively involved in the planning of any act of hazing as defined above where the act of hazing creates a substantial risk of physical injury or death to the person(s) hazed.

(f) It is not a defense to an allegation of hazing that:
1. the consent of the victim had been obtained;
2. the conduct or activity that resulted in the death or injury of a person was not part of any official organizational event or otherwise sanctioned or approved by the student organization or group; or
3. the conduct or activity that resulted in the death or injury of a person was not done as a condition of membership into a student organization.

(g) Hazing does not include customary athletic events or other similar contests or competitions or any activity or conduct that furthers a legal and legitimate objective.

(h) All student groups, whether or not registered with the University and whether or not officially recognized by the University are subject to the same hazing prohibitions set out in this section (10). With regard to student groups that are not registered students organizations, and against which there is an allegation of hazing, the principles of group responsibility and scope provisions of University Regulation UCF-5.011(1)(b), (1)(c), and (4) shall apply, as well as the conduct proceeding procedures of University Regulation UCF-5.013.

Source: http://goldenrule.sdes.ucf.edu/

State of Florida Hazing Law

1006.63 Hazing prohibited.—
(1) As used in this section, “hazing” means any action or situation that recklessly or intentionally endangers the mental or physical health or safety of a student for purposes including, but not limited to, initiation or admission into or affiliation with any organization operating under the sanction of a postsecondary institution. “Hazing” includes, but is not limited to, pressuring or coercing the student into violating state or federal law, any brutality of a physical nature, such as whipping, beating, branding, exposure to the elements, forced consumption of any food, liquor, drug, or other substance, or other forced physical activity that could adversely affect the physical health or safety of the student, and also includes any activity that would subject the student to extreme mental stress, such as sleep deprivation, forced exclusion from social contact, forced conduct that could result in extreme embarrassment, or other forced activity that could adversely affect the mental health or dignity of the student. Hazing does not include customary athletic events or other similar contests or competitions or any activity or conduct that furthers a legal and legitimate objective.
(2) A person commits hazing, a third degree felony, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083, when he or she intentionally or recklessly commits any act of hazing as defined in subsection (1) upon another person who is a member of or an applicant to any type of student organization and the hazing results in serious bodily injury or death of such other person.
(3) A person commits hazing, a first degree misdemeanor, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083, when he or she intentionally or recklessly commits any act of hazing as defined in subsection (1) upon another person who is a member of or an applicant to any type of student organization and the hazing creates a substantial risk of physical injury or death to such other person.
(4) As a condition of any sentence imposed pursuant to subsection (2) or subsection (3), the court shall order the defendant to attend and complete a 4-hour hazing education course and may also impose a condition of drug or alcohol probation.
(5) It is not a defense to a charge of hazing that:
(a) The consent of the victim had been obtained;
(b) The conduct or activity that resulted in the death or injury of a person was not part of an official organizational event or was not otherwise sanctioned or approved by the organization; or
(c) The conduct or activity that resulted in death or injury of the person was not done as a condition of membership to an organization.
(6) This section shall not be construed to preclude prosecution for a more general offense resulting from the same criminal transaction or episode.
(7) Public and nonpublic postsecondary educational institutions whose students receive state student financial assistance must adopt a written antihazing policy and under such policy must adopt rules prohibiting students or other persons associated with any student organization from engaging in hazing.
(8) Public and nonpublic postsecondary educational institutions must provide a program for the enforcement of such rules and must adopt appropriate penalties for violations of such rules, to be administered by the person at the institution responsible for the sanctioning of such organizations.
(a) Such penalties at Florida College System institutions and state universities may include the imposition of fines; the withholding of diplomas or transcripts pending compliance with the rules or pending payment of fines; and the imposition of probation, suspension, or dismissal.
(b) In the case of an organization at a Florida College System institution or state university that authorizes hazing in blatant disregard of such rules, penalties may also include rescission of permission for that organization to operate on campus property or to otherwise operate under the sanction of the institution.
(c) All penalties imposed under the authority of this subsection shall be in addition to any penalty imposed for violation of any of the criminal laws of this state or for violation of any other rule of the institution to which the violator may be subject.
(9) Rules adopted pursuant hereto shall apply to acts conducted on or off campus whenever such acts are deemed to constitute hazing.
(10) Upon approval of the antihazing policy of a Florida College System institution or state university and of the rules and penalties adopted pursuant thereto, the institution shall provide a copy of such policy, rules, and penalties to each student enrolled in that institution and shall require the inclusion of such policy, rules, and penalties in the bylaws of every organization operating under the sanction of the institution.
History.—s. 333, ch. 2002-387; s. 3, ch. 2005-146; s. 82, ch. 2011-5.

Source: https://www.flsenate.gov/laws/statutes/2018/1006.6