Hazing, once considered a college rite of passage, has come under increasing scrutiny in recent years. When students participate in or lead hazing activities, colleges and universities may discipline students in a variety of ways, up to and including expulsion.
Students, however, may also face criminal charges stemming from hazing. New Jersey has anti-hazing laws, meaning a student may face actions from both their school and local governments. A new federal law may result in more students facing allegations of hazing.
The problem is that colleges and universities and law enforcement may want to make an example of a student, doling out punishments that far exceed a student's actions. They may fail to consider relevant evidence.
Students who have been accused of hazing may face a two-pronged assault on their future and their rights. They need someone who understands both university policies and procedures and New Jersey's criminal system to advocate for them.
The Lento Law Firm Criminal Defense Team is uniquely situated to defend allegations and charges of hazing. Our team stands at the intersection of criminal defense and college university disciplinary processes. School-related crimes can be challenging to defend, and we can provide one-stop support for our clients.
Allegations of hazing can derail your education and career. The Lento Law Firm Criminal Defense Team works with college students throughout New Jersey to protect their education, their future, and their goals. Contact us using this form or by calling us at 888-535-3686.
New Jersey's Anti-Hazing Laws
In 2021, New Jersey enacted the Timothy J. Piazza's Law. This law requires all colleges and universities to have anti-hazing policies. In 2024, the U.S. Congress passed the Stop Campus Hazing Act.
On the criminal side, the law increased the penalties for hazing. Events that result in serious injury or death are now third-degree crimes. Hazing that causes any bodily injury became a fourth-degree crime.
To be a crime in New Jersey, hazing must have two components. One, it causes another person some type of harm. Two, it occurs in specific settings within a college or university.
A person may be guilty of hazing when they knowingly or recklessly:
- Subject someone else to abuse, mistreatment, harassment, or degradation of a physical, mental, emotional, or sexual nature
- Force or cause another person to:
- Break any federal or state criminal laws
- Consume any food, drink, alcohol, drug, or other substance that could cause harm or otherwise negatively affect someone's health
An individual may be guilty of hazing even if they don't cause injury but make a person fear being injured or otherwise harmed.
New Jersey considers an incident to be hazing when:
- It happens as part of an initiation to join a student or fraternal organization
- The group's membership is predominantly students or alumni
What Isn't Hazing
The new statutes specifically exclude the following activities when they are “reasonable” and “customary”:
- Athletic and sporting games and other events
- Law enforcement and military training
- Contests
- Competitions
For example, a track team has an annual competition for new members. Participants have to wear a full business suit and run a 100-meter dash. This is unlikely to be considered hazing as it's a reasonable activity and doesn't appear intended to hurt or injure students.
Immunity
Individuals are immune from prosecution from criminal hazing charges in certain circumstances. Individuals cannot be charged when:
- They contacted law enforcement or campus security through 9-1-1 or other means to report someone needed medical help due to hazing
- They provided their name to law enforcement or campus security as well as the names of anyone who was working with them
- They were the first person to make the 9-1-1 or other emergency report
- They remained at the scene and with the person who needed medical assistance until emergency services arrived
This can apply to either a person acting alone or a group of people acting together.
These requirements create a narrow exception for qualifying for immunity. Even if you cannot get immunity, details such as calling 9-1-1, remaining with someone who needs medical assistance, or otherwise working to either stop or minimize the damage from hazing are relevant.
The Lento Law Firm Criminal Defense Team helps our clients build cases that factor in all of these details. While you may not qualify for immunity, you may have charges reduced or even dismissed.
Other Criminal Charges
A student may not be charged under New Jersey's hazing laws but still be charged with other crimes. This is why it's so important that you work with a team, like the Lento Law Firm Criminal Defense Team, that understands how university codes of conduct and criminal law can intersect.
For example, Student A trips Student B, making Student B fall down a flight of stairs. Student B is joining Student A's fraternity, and their university initially says this was a hazing incident.
Additional investigation finds that the tripping was unrelated to any sort of initiation activities but was instead related to a personal disagreement between the two students. Student A won't be charged under New Jersey's hazing laws. He may, however, face other criminal charges, such as assault.
University Codes of Conduct
It's not double jeopardy to face both disciplinary action and criminal charges for the same hazing incident. Students may face both following allegations of hazing. They require different defenses and follow different procedures, and it's important to understand both.
University disciplinary action can range from having a letter included in a student's file to expulsion. A student may lose scholarships or financial aid even if they aren't suspended or expelled.
Each college or university establishes its code of conduct and disciplinary process. Students should check with their student handbook or code of conduct.
Many schools do follow a similar procedure for disciplinary action:
- Report of misconduct
- Investigation of misconduct
- Hearing
- Decision
- Appeal
During a hearing, students usually have an opportunity to present evidence, call witnesses, and defend themselves against the charges.
Again, students need to remember that they may face both disciplinary action and criminal charges. Even if a school doesn't pursue disciplinary action, a student may still face criminal charges, and a student may not face criminal charges but will face disciplinary action.
Defend Against Criminal Hazing Charges
Being charged with criminal hazing can have serious repercussions for your education, your future, and your career. One of the challenges with criminal hazing defense is that it often involves and requires an understanding of college and university policies and procedures.
The Lento Law Firm Criminal Defense Team provides our clients with knowledge of both New Jersey's criminal laws and procedures and university policies and procedures. We're familiar with how these two separate but related systems can interact.
If you're facing criminal hazing charges in New Jersey, the Lento Law Firm Criminal Defense Team can help. Contact us using this form or by calling us at 888-535-3686.
