The lawsuit that was filed on Tuesday alleged that Foltz and other pledges who were being enlisted into the fraternity were blindfolded, taken into a basement and forced to drink an entire bottle of alcohol, which is the equivalent of about 40 shots.
The parents of Stone Foltz, the 20-year-old Bowling Green State University student who died from alcohol poisoning after an alleged hazing ritual in March, have filed a wrong death lawsuit against the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity and several of its members, CBS News reported.
The lawsuit that was filed on Tuesday alleged that Foltz, and other pledges who were being enlisted into the fraternity were blindfolded, taken into a basement and forced to drink an entire bottle of alcohol – the equivalent of about 40 shots.
Foltz finished the bottle in as little as 18 minutes, and members of the fraternity took him to his apartment, where a roommate found him unconscious, the complaint said. He died three days later at the hospital.
Foltz's blood-alcohol level was .35, which is more than four times the legal limit, Wood County prosecuting attorney Paul Dobson said, CBS News previously reported.
Shari and Cory Foltz last spoke to their son shortly before the fraternity initiation ritual was held.
"He had said to me, 'Yeah, we have a drinking ritual that we have to go to and I'm not looking forward to it. I don't want to do it.' My response is 'then don't' and he said, that's rituals. You have to do them. That's every fraternity. Of course, I never thought in a million years that it was that type of ritual," Shari Foltz told CBS News’ Mola Lenghi last month.
Eight current or former students have been indicted in connection to the alleged hazing death of Foltz on charges of involuntary manslaughter, reckless homicide, evidence tampering, and obstructing justice, The Washington Post previously reported.
Those named in the lawsuit include organizers of the alleged hazing ritual, the Bowling Green chapter and Pi Kappa Alpha International Fraternity, CBS reported.
The lawsuit said the fraternity and its chapters nationwide "have for decades had incidents of hazing and misconduct resulting in disciplinary actions by universities, civil suits and serious injuries,” CBS reported.
In spring semester 2020, the national organization placed the Bowling Green chapter on probation. The lawsuit said, ”but they simply picked up where they left off after probation ended.” After Foltz’s death, the university permanently banned the fraternity, CBS reported.
Foltz, who was from Delaware, Ohio, was a sophomore studying business, according to Bowling Green State University.
According to the lawsuit, Foltz, was dropped off after the off-campus party at his apartment by members of the fraternity, including his "big brother," who was supposed to spend the night with Foltz and make sure he was OK, the lawsuit said.
"Instead, Stone Foltz was taken from the car into his apartment and left alone on the couch to die," the complaint said.
The lawsuit said that Foltz was still breathing when his roommate came home and found him facedown on a couch, but soon stopped breathing and his face and ears turned purple and blue, CBS reported.
Foltz was on life support. When he died his parents donated his organs.
In a statement shared with The Washington Post, the Pi Kappa Alpha International Fraternity condemned the actions of its members and said the organization “supports a full investigation and holding those accountable to the fullest extent of the law.”
