Navy Hazing
Crossing the Line
Hazing with electricity
Reporters wrote that seaman Russell Barnwell Wiebye died in “a playful initiation” in which an electric current was administered to shock him.
1945
Military Hazing
Crossing the Line ceremony: Electrocution
Shipfitter 2C Jack P. Jarosz died while touching an electrified trident during the King Neptune portion of his hazing for the U.S. Navy, according to the San Bernardino (CA) County Sun (April 3, 1946). He was also kneeling on an electric plate charged with 115 volts of electrical charge. No surprise: Liuetenant cleared of wrongdoing by Navy Brass. See clipping from Richmond Palladium Item, October 3, 1946 below.
1960
Military Hazing
Dunking ceremony for new Guard member
Drowning
SPL 4C Walter R. Van Vickle screamed “I can’t swim” as five veterans stripped him and threw him into deep water. The five were charged with involuntary manslaughter. The National Guard declined to order a court martial for the five.
1967
Fort Bragg, North Carolina
Unofficial Officers Club initiation
Alcohol-related suffocation death
An alcoholic concoction made up of seven bottles of champagne and five bottles of vodka resulted in the death of paratrooper Lt. Robert Reeves, 23, of Charleston, S.C. His comrades were initiating him to celebrate his first qualified jump.
2011
United States Marines; Military
Hazing Suicide after mental and physical abuse.
Lance Corporal Harry Lew was a suicide by a self-inflicted wound after fellow Marines punished him for falling asleep on sentry duty. A judge punished participants but found cause to doubt that the hazing was directly responsible for Lew taking his life.
2011
United States Marines
Suicide after Physical hazing
Chinese-American Danny Chen allegedly was targeted for hazing in his outfit and killed himself.
2016
United States Marines
Muslim dies following reports of heavy hazing
Recruit Raheel Sidiqui death reported by New York Times Magazine.
2017
Green Beret,
Involuntary homicide during a hazing punishment session
Army Staff Sgt. Logan Melgar, a Green Beret, stopped breathing while being taped and beaten by comrades in Mali. Error! Hyperlink reference not valid. The first was sentenced in June 2019 to one year in prison. One perpetrator later behaved in a creepy manner with the widow. Thank you to Lt. Col Dan for your correction.
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Masonic and Other Adult Secret Societies:
1737
Philadelphia
Masons
Hazing prank
Daniel Rees, a man who wanted nothing more than to be a Freemason, was killed by thrown boiling liquid during a faked initiation in which he had to kiss the backsides of the pranksters and submit to other indignities. Freemason Benjamin Franklin’s reputation was tarnished in The American Mercury when he admitted to laughing at the cruel prank instead of ordering the hazers to desist. The entire tale is told in Hank Nuwer’s “Hazing: Destroying Young Lives” (Indiana University, 2018).
1890 (January)
Royal Arch Masons
Huntington, W.V.
Death during initiation for the Royal Arch degree
The Rev. J. W. Johnson of the Methodist Episcopal Church in Huntington, WV died of injuries days after he fell to his death during a climbing initiation.
1896
Iowa Elks
Hazing Prank
Bizarre death of Edward W. Curry following an “initiation” by the Elks. He was “accidentally” fried in an electric chair stunt. Cause of death was blood poisoning due to infection. He died November 19, 1896. He was an Iowa state Democratic party chair at the time of death.
1899
Toledo, Ohio
Catholic Young Mens Association
Rough hazing resulting in fatal lung hemorrhage On his deathbed Charles Steinie accused members of punching him in the dark as the cause of his wounds that led to his death.
1899
Carbondale, Illinois
Select Knight of the Royal Arch (a trade society for liquor sellers and salesmen)
Killed during initiation by explosive device
During initiation ceremonies, a sort-of “paddle” with a gun barrel four inches long was employed with a single 32-calibre cartridge that explodes upon an intentional tap. Apparently, traveling salesman Gus Giesek, the initiation’s master of ceremonies, accidentally mishandled the device and shot William Lafayette Deason (1849-1899), a Civil War veteran, in the right hip. Infection set in and Deason “died in awful agony,” according to the article “Initiation KIlled Him,” Mercersburg (Pa.) Journal, December 1, 1899.
1913
Birmingham, Alabama
Loyal Order of Moose
Hazing deaths Initiates Donald A. Kenny and Christopher Gustin were being given a prank initiation in which both thought they had consented to a branding. Although they passed out, the initiation continued with deadly consequences, according to the Pittston Gazette (July 25, 1913).
1929
Chicago, Illinois K
Knights of Columbus Initiation death
Tossing candidates into the air on blankets and so on was once a common form of horseplay during initiations. John C. Van Sistine, 25, suffered a broken neck. Van Sistine had been married during the previous year.
1934
Camden, N.J.
Colored Els of Camden
Samuel A. Wilson died after being strapped into an electric chair.
1942
Baltimore
Independent Benevolent Protective Order of the Elks
Physical hazing
Cephas Mills, 19, an African-American youth, died during his initiation by some 30 members. He was placed on an electrified hot seat with current set high enough to kill him. It was under police investigation. I am trying to find out if anyone was charged with a crime. Newspaper account below.
1945
McKeesport, PA
Colored Elks Lodge, Initiate Allen Singleton died of a massive heart attack while members were shocking him with an electric razor. Members were released after an investigation. Source: Pittsburgh Post Gazette, July 5, 1945.
2004
Patchogue, NY
Southside Masonic Lodge 493
Shooting death during hazing
Accidental shooting death of new member A shooting during a bizarre “William Tell” ritual with live ammunition at Southside Masonic Lodge 493 killed William James, 47. The shooter served no prison time.
Occupational Hazing
1946
SS Frederick Galbraith work ship
Crossing the Line ceremony, non-military Occupational hazing
Teenage workers Leroy Robert Bragg, 14, and Stanford Fluit, 16, died from an overdose of saltpeter during a ship’s hazing at the Equator. Other crewmen became ill but lived.
Survivors: Milton Fleishman and Harry Rose
2004
Occupational Hazing
Denton County, Texas
Republic Energy Drilling Company
In 2004, a fatal occupational initiation in Denton County, Texas, led to a jury trial that ended with a 38-year-old drilling rig hazer receiving an 18-year prison sentence—only two years less than the maximum penalty the law allowed. 23-year-old Shawn Davis, a new employee of Republic Energy Drilling Company, was hooked to a cable by veteran workers and then accidentally tossed and dragged to his death.
Hazing Deaths in Non-North American Nations (Under construction)
Australia:
1951
Medical School Hazing
Adelaide, Australia
Drowning by hazing prank
John Gregory Neill, a medical student who could not swim, perished after upperclass students threw him into the River Torrens, according to the Sydney Morning Herald.