Piazza's parents have spoken out poignantly about the incident. The new charges are based on surveillance footage that authorities managed to recover after a frat brother deleted it. His brothers. In the early morning of February 3, 2017, Piazza tried to get up, but once he reached a standing position, fell backwards. WebAccording to the grand jury presentment, around 9 p.m., the videos show Piazza and other pledges in a ritual called "the gauntlet," consuming large amounts of beer, vodka and The frat decided to pick him up, move him to a new location, talk about it for forty minutes, agree to call for help but not inform them when the incident occurred and tried to clean him of blood and change his clothes. If you don't think 18-21 year olds should be legally responsible for their actions, fine, but we're also going to have to take away their rights to vote, drive, hold a job, etc. Piazza died Feb. 4 at a hospital after consuming what authorities said was a dangerous amount of alcohol, as well as sustaining severe injuries to his head and abdomen. They left him for the whole night alone. Piazza was brought to Mount Nittany Medical Center, but was quickly transported to Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center because of the severity of his injuries. "The videotape is horrible, and it is gruesome," Kline said. Tim was in no way responsible for or a part of this behavior. Piazza, a 19-year-old engineering student from Lebanon, New Jersey, suffered a fractured skull, shattered spleen and other injuries, likely during a series of falls inside the house. Flanked by Piazza's parents, Centre County district attorney Stacy Parks Miller told reporters that 12 new defendants, as well as five old ones, are facing new criminal charges, including involuntary manslaughter, hazing and giving alcohol to minors. "However, after later examining one of the DVR surveillance boxes, State College Police uncovered evidence that the basement camera footage had actually been manually deleted just as State College Police were poised to take possession of the recording equipment.". We've received your submission. When you get somebody into an environment where they have seemingly no way out, where every authority figure is encouraging or forcing you to drink and nobody would help you, say, leave and go home safely, it is extremely difficult to turn down drinks. This is a footnote from the CMV moderators. Piazza received "at least 18 drinks in over 1 hour and 22 minutes," Centre County District Attorney Stacy Parks Miller said at a news conference Monday, and he "never once obtained any of those drinks for himself. I know; I sound callous, and my view is wayyyy different than other peoples'. In this state of intoxication he fell on the basement stairs of the house and was knocked unconscious. There's fault to go around there. He was pronounced dead after roughly 20 hours of surgery proved that he could not likely recover. I haven't liked the idolization of him, and how the parents have basically ripped on everyone that their son has ever known. Again, these are people who WERE RESPONSIBLE FOR HIM BEING IN THAT CONDITION who were more concerned about the possible consequences for themselves than saving the life of a badly injured pledge. I don't know, a lot of humane sensible things. New comments cannot be posted and votes cannot be cast. A judge presiding over the preliminary hearing, which began in June, will decide whether there is enough evidence to send the case to trial. Excerpts from the footage havebeen compelling: Fraternity members are shown holding Piazza down, strapping him to a backpack to keep him from turning over and choking, pouring liquids on him and trying to get him to stand so they could dress him even whenhe appeared to be unconscious. Tim Piazza may have been somewhat complicit in the hazing. No average person would sit there, make the strange. personal nit picky digs that you were, trying to justify their blatant disregard for a humans life. We'd like to remind you of a couple of things. He's unconscious," Scicchitano said after Piazzas first fall. The prosecutors' case has not progressed evenly since May, as the accused have said Parks Miller is overreaching with her allegations. PennLive.com reporter Christian Alexandersen was also at the hearing. Piazza subsequently stumbled toward the basement steps, then fell down them. Tim would be alive today if they didn't care more about themselves more. Cold and hyperventilating. Advertisement Pledges showed signs of intoxication, and Piazza had to be helped to a couch. Three brothers picked him up and "slammed" him back onto the couch. "State College Police sent the box to the FBI, whose agents were able to restore the video from the deleted hard drive," the district attorney's office said. His "brothers," could have handled it better, but it is clear his parents taught him no accountability, and have no idea what it is themselves. Not only have you accused me if being involved in this or something like this, you have decided I am a sociopath. Sixteen Penn State fraternity brothers were in court Monday, all facing charges connected with the death of a pledge. "The visions of him lying in a hospital bed battered and bruised and on life support make no sense. In another tweet, typed after those in the courtroom watched footage of Piazza roll in pain on the floor in the early hours of the morning after falling 15 feet, Snyder said: "The courtroom is silent.". Feel free to message us. The grand jury document referenced surveillance footage other than the recently recovered video. In June, Piazza family attorney Tom Kline told CBS News the family hasn't decided whether they'll be in the courtroom when the surveillance videos are played. Reach him at: justin@cbsnews.com. Maybe he didn't need to go to an event where he knew there would be drinking, but it's doubtful he expected to be forced to drink as much as he was or that he could have possibly been making rational decisions a few drinks in. WebSurveillance video inside a Penn State frat house showed a student who looked like a corpse by the time fraternity members came to his aid, a police detective said on A court affidavit said one of the brothers, Braxton Becker, purposely deleted the basement footage two days after Piazza died but the FBI was able to recover it. Piazza subsequently stumbled toward the basement steps, then fell down them. I think they're acting like distraught parents struggling to cope with the death of their son even if it means distorting reality a bit and choosing to see his son in the best of lights and his frat brothers in the worst. Ok, you are right. This story has been shared 102,156 times. Please enter valid email address to continue. Sign up to receive breaking True Crime Daily news, exclusive stories and behind-the-scenes info. But he didn't die because he got knock out drunk; he died because of the head trauma and later mishandling of the situation by people who had claimed to be there to look out for and support him. The most serious offenses include involuntary manslaughter and aggravated assault, while others are charged with hazing or alcohol violations. Piazzas father, Jim Piazza, said his family was making plans for the holidays without the son. He was estimated to have had a blood-alcohol level several times the legal limit for adult drivers. Of the 17 fraternity members charged, five now face manslaughter charges. They are the sole reason he is dead. Let's look at the Wikipedia article about the incident. The video captured the night 14 pledges, including Piazza, were taken through a speed-drinking event called "the gauntlet." He had no shirt on and no shoes on. The footage was collected by 12 cameras positioned throughout the house, the Inquirer reported. He was later pronounced dead at a hospital in the early hours of Feb. 4. you are trying to grasp onto and shred of bullshit in a weak attempt at creating an underdog hero out of these narcissistic assholes. Sure. Over the rest of that evening, fraternity members were recorded pouring liquid on him, strapping a loaded backpack to him and taking other ineffective or counterproductive steps to deal with his condition. He was found several hours later by members of the frat. Video footage from the fraternity's extensive surveillance system has been crucial in the case and helped prosecutors construct a timeline of events that led to Piazza's death. Copyright 2023 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved. Piazza appears lifeless for most of the video, rolling on the ground and holding his head in his hands. Penn State's former Beta Theta Pi fraternity house now sits empty. The grand jury document referenced surveillance footage other than the recently recovered video. Gary DiBileo Jr. of Scranton left the Centre County Courthouse without knowing when he'll be back and if the charges against him will go to trial. UhhI'm not affiliated with penn state or a fraternity in general. Scicchitano testified in court that Piazza "looked like a corpse" the morning after the fall. Miller explained that the recovered surveillance footage shows frat brothers forcing Piazza to consume copious amounts of alcohol. He continued to stand up only to repeatedly fall back down. But until recently, that did not include the basement, where Piazza was found the next morning. Piazza's death "was the direct result of traumatic brain injuries," according to the forensic pathologist on the case. Piazza "was a happy and caring human being" who "was killed at the hands of those he was seeking friendship from," his father said, according to ABC News. They carried him back upstairs, but it was another 40 minutes before an ambulance was summoned. Sometimes to excess. He was pronounced dead less than 24 hours later. But the hazing was not the unconscionable part of what happened, and it wasn't what led to his death. In September, following an unusually long, hard-fought preliminary hearing, a judge dismissed the most serious charges against the fraternity members. I don't think it serves anyone to blame the other fraternity members and act like Timothy piazza had no involvement. Roughly twelve hours after his initial fall, emergency services were summoned but not informed that the fall had occurred the night before. Because court recessed without a decision, all 16 men are expected to be back in court in the coming weeks. Web237K views 5 years ago There are new developments in connection with the case of the fraternity hazing ritual at Penn State that allegedly caused the tragic death of 19-year-old The fraternity was supposed to be alcohol-free after a suspension in 2009. It was at this point that he was carried upstairs. Obviously the situation is horrible, but kids need to understand they are responsible for their actions. From trying to beat him awake, to abandoning him, to covering up the evidence, everything about this shows criminal negligence. Meanwhile, tensions were high in the courtroom Thursday, with Centre County District Attorney Stacey Parks Miller turning her back on Judge Allen Sinclair to speak directly to the courtroom gallery, Philly.com reports. The 19-year-old staggered through the house, visibly in pain he fell head first several times. But the hazing was not the unconscionable part of what happened, and it wasn't what led to his death. The Centre County District Attorney announced on Monday that the FBI has recovered video footage from the night before 19-year-old Timothy Piazza's death. Piazzadied in ahospital Feb. 4, about 30 hours after a bid acceptance partyin which the former high school football player fell repeatedly. 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