Eighteen fraternity members were charged in the death of a 19-year-old Pennsylvania State University student who fell multiple times after consuming toxic levels of alcohol — and whose own friends failed to get help for him for many hours, authorities said. 
 
 [A Penn State student fell down the stairs at a fraternity. And for nearly 12 hours, no one called police] 
 
 The fraternity brothers’ actions, and inaction, were detailed in grand jury investigation findings released Friday by Centre County District Attorney Stacy Parks Miller. The Beta Theta Pi chapter was charged as well. 
 
 Timothy Piazza’s death led to the permanent banning of the fraternity from Penn State, and strict new rules for Greek organizations on campus. Penn State’s president called the grand jury’s findings “sickening” and vowed to firmly enforce the new rules. 
 
 The grand jury concluded that this was not an isolated incident but rather, “the Penn State Greek community nurtured an environment so permissive of excessive drinking and hazing that it emboldened its members to repeatedly act with reckless disregard to human life.” 
 
 The Beta Theta Pi chapter house was celebrating with Piazza and other students who had just accepted bids to join the fraternity one night in February. During the pledging party, Piazza fell down the stairs after drinking excessively, but no one called for help for almost 12 hours, according to police, who found him unconscious and took him to a hospital. He died the next morning. 
 
 Eight of the fraternity brothers were charged with involuntary manslaughter, as was the chapter, and other charges included hazing, aggravated and simple assault, alcohol-related violations and evidence tampering. The investigation benefited from video evidence from surveillance cameras inside the fraternity’s house, which is privately owned. 
 
 [Penn State bans fraternity, tightens rules amid criminal inquiry into student’s death] 
 
 The grand jury’s presentment describes pledges ordered to go through a gauntlet of drinking stations at the party that night, at which they were ordered to quickly drink vodka, shotgun a beer, and so on. It described videotape of Piazza being helped staggering, hunched over, to a couch and later trying unsuccessfully to open the front door, then “severely staggering” in the direction of the basement steps a little before 11 p.m. 
 
 He was found unconscious at the bottom of the stairs, according to the findings. Shortly before midnight, a fraternity brother wrote on a group message that Piazza “might actually be a problem. He fell 15 feet down a flight of stairs, hair-first, going to need help.” 
 
 Later video showed Piazza on a couch, unresponsive even as fraternity brothers poured water on his face, his left arm falling limply when someone lifted it, according to the grand jury presentment. Someone sat on his legs to keep him from rolling off the couch. At one point, a newly initiated member of the fraternity saw Piazza, became upset and screamed at the others that they needed to get him to the hospital. Someone pushed him against a wall and ordered him to leave, telling him they had the situation under control. When he tried to convince another brother to call 911, the new member was told he was crazy. 
 
 At about 1 a.m., fraternity brothers put a backpack full of books on Piazza, who had thrown up and was twitching, in an attempt to keep him from rolling onto his back, according to the jurors’ findings. After 3 a.m., Piazza tried to stand but fell, hitting his head on the floor. He fell again at 4 a.m. At 5 a.m., he fell, hit his head on an iron railing and landed on a stone floor. He got up, trying to get to the front door, but fell and hit his head on the door. Fraternity brothers stepped over him. After 7 a.m., Piazza fell down the basement stairs again. When fraternity members found him, unconscious, cold to the touch, and with blood on his face the next morning, it was more than 40 minutes before they called 911. 
 
 Piazza died the next morning. 
 
 His parents, Jim and Evelyn Piazza, stood by as the charges were announced, according to an Associated Press report from the news conference Friday, and his father said the death didn’t have to happen: “Sadly,” Jim Piazza said, “we’re never going to see his smile again except in pictures.” 
 
 Eric Barron, the president of Penn State, responded to the grand jury’s findings with a statement expressing horror and determination to enforce strict new rules: 
 
 The details alleged in these findings are heart-wrenching and incomprehensible. The university community continues to mourn his tragic death, but no pain we feel can begin to compare to the devastating heartbreak that Timothy’s family and friends are experiencing. The alleged details in the grand jury presentment, which suggest the inhumane treatment of a student forced through hazing to consume dangerous amounts of alcohol and endure hours of suffering, are sickening and difficult to understand. 
 
 He also wrote that the chapter, which had a policy banning alcohol, appeared to be a “model” fraternity. It was not. 
 
 For this reason, we have announced the imposition of a number of aggressive measures and made clear recognition by the university is at stake for those Greek-letter organizations that do not abide by the rules. Indeed, since this tragic incident occurred, the university suspended Sigma Alpha Mu for its flagrant violations of our measures. While some have criticized our measures as excessive, they are not. It is essential that all constituents, including these private Greek-letter organizations, alumni, parents, national organizations and all other partners involved are committed to ensure immediate, vital and sustainable changes. 
 
 The new rules included a ban on liquor, kegs and day-long parties. Ten Greek parties with alcohol are allowed per semester rather than 45, and compliance is monitored by both students and university staff. 
 
 “Alcohol misuse, hazing and sexual misconduct pose significant problems across the nation and particularly on college campuses,” Barron wrote. “We have also seen a rise in the intensity of excessive drinking and hazing at Penn State and elsewhere, despite more than a decade of focus and the introduction of educational and other programs, as well as policies that clearly spell out consequences.” 
 
 Leaders of Beta Theta Pi International responded in a written statement Friday, saying the charges “are incredibly disheartening as the organization and its membership continue to grieve Tim’s passing and the pain experienced by his family.” 
 
 They wrote that the fraternity had cooperated fully with officials in the investigation and that early findings indicated that “the behavior of several undergraduate members was in direct contradiction of the International Fraternity’s expectations and risk management policies, as well as the International Fraternity’s reputation and commitment to character development.” 
 
 The fraternity underscored that it does not tolerate hazing or alcohol abuse, and that the former members were well educated by both the fraternity and the university on those polices, “however, they are entitled to the presumption of innocence as they face these charges. 
 
 “As such, and despite the number of accolades bestowed upon the former chapter by the university in recent years, the International Fraternity stands by its decision to suspend and disband the former chapter on February 17, 2017.” 
 
 Read the Charges and Presentment here: 
 
 Read the Beta Theta Pi Statement here: ||||| Centre County District Attorney Stacy Parks Miller, left, hugs Evelyn Piazza as her husband Jim stands in the background after announcing the findings in the investigation of the February death of the... (Associated Press) 
 
 BELLEFONTE, Pa. (AP) — Eighteen Penn State fraternity brothers have been charged with crimes ranging up to involuntary manslaughter in the case of a pledge who authorities say repeatedly fell down a flight of stairs after he and others were made to run a gantlet of drinking stations where they guzzled vodka, beer and wine. 
 
 Fraternity members at Beta Theta Pi resisted getting help for 19-year-old Timothy Piazza, causing him to suffer for hours and possibly making his injuries worse, a prosecutor said Friday in announcing the results of a grand jury investigation. 
 
 "This is a very sad day for Centre County — it's been sad ever since we lost a child for reasons that are totally preventable. A child who just wanted to come to college here, who put his faith in Penn State," District Attorney Stacy Parks Miller said at a news conference. 
 
 Eight of the fraternity brothers and the chapter itself were charged with involuntary manslaughter. Other charges include aggravated and simple assault, evidence tampering, alcohol-related violations and hazing. An attorney for the chapter did not immediately respond to telephone or email messages seeking comment. 
 
 The grand jury, aided by security camera footage, said the fraternity was heavily stocked with booze for the Feb. 2 ceremony at which Piazza, a sophomore engineering student from Lebanon, New Jersey, and 13 others accepted pledge bids. The pledges were pressured to chug vodka, shotgun beers and drink wine at different stations. 
 
 Piazza tumbled down a long flight of stairs that night and fell several other times, injuring his head, Miller said. The next morning, he fell down the same steps and was unconscious when help was finally summoned. Piazza died Feb. 4 as a result of a traumatic brain injury. 
 
 Miller said doctors estimate Piazza had a blood-alcohol content of nearly .40 percent. 
 
 The investigation found some frat members tried to cover up what happened. A text message recovered by police urged pledges to get rid of evidence of alcohol, and conversations were found discussing deleting conversations from a messaging app. 
 
 "Sadly, we're never going to see his smile again except in pictures," said the student's father, Jim Piazza, who attended the news conference. "This didn't have to happen. This is the result of a feeling of entitlement, flagrant disregard" for the law. 
 
 Penn State permanently banned Beta Theta Pi on March 30, accusing it of a "persistent pattern" of excessive drinking, drug use and hazing. University President Eric Barron called the report heart-wrenching, sickening and incomprehensible. 
 
 "It is numbing how an atmosphere that endangers the well-being and safety of another person could occur within an organization that prided itself on commitment to each other and to its community," Barron said. 
 
 Miller said video footage turned over to investigators was critical to the investigation, providing evidence of what occurred and contradicting stories some witnesses had told. 
 
 The cameras recorded Piazza drinking vodka and beer at around 9:20 p.m. and an hour later needing help to walk, staggering and hunched over, from an area near the basement stairs to a couch. He's later shown trying unsuccessfully to open the front door, then "severely staggering drunkenly toward the basement steps" at about 10:45 p.m., the grand jury report said. 
 
 He was subsequently found at the bottom of the steps after apparently falling face-first. Four brothers carried his limp body back upstairs, where some poured liquid on him and one slapped him in the face, the jury said. Fraternity members put a backpack containing textbooks on him so Piazza, lying on his back, would not suffocate on his own vomit, the grand jury wrote. 
 
 When a brother insisted Piazza needed medical help, he was confronted and shoved into a wall, the report said. When the same brother insisted again that Piazza required help, he was told others were biology and kinesiology majors so his opinion wasn't as valuable as theirs, the jury said. 
 
 Piazza tried to get up around 3:20 a.m. but fell backward and hit his head on the wood floor, the report said. He fell onto a stone floor at 5 a.m. and was last caught on video after 7 a.m. He was discovered in the basement at about 10 a.m. 
 
 "Timothy was lying on his back with his arms clenched tight at his sides and his hands in the air," grand jurors wrote. "His chest was bare, his breathing heavy and he had blood on his face." 
 
 During the next 40 minutes, fraternity brothers shook him, tried to prop him up, covered him with a blanket, wiped his face and attempted to dress him before one finally called 911, the grand jury said. 
 
 The eight defendants facing more serious charges were scheduled to appear before a judge late Friday to be arraigned and have bail set. That will occur for the other defendants next week, Miller said. Five face a single count each of evidence tampering. ||||| Breaking News Emails Get breaking news alerts and special reports. The news and stories that matter, delivered weekday mornings. 
 
 / Updated By Erik Ortiz 
 
 Nearly two dozen members of a Penn State University fraternity are facing criminal charges, including involuntary manslaughter and aggravated assault, after a pledge fatally fell down stairs during an alcohol-fueled event, Pennsylvania prosecutors announced Friday. 
 
 Ten of the 18 brothers belonging to Beta Theta Pi were arraigned Friday afternoon following a months-long investigation into the death of 19-year-old Timothy Piazza, a sophomore engineering major from Lebanon, New Jersey. They did not comment about the charges, and were later released on bail. 
 
 The charges include aggravated assault, hazing, furnishing alcohol to minors and consumption of alcohol by a minor, said Centre County District Attorney Stacy Parks Miller. Eight of the brothers have also been charged with involuntary manslaughter and the fraternity itself has been charged. 
 
 The involuntary manslaughter counts carry a maximum punishment of 2-1/2 years to 5 years, while the aggravated assault counts, a first-degree felony, carry a maximum prison term of 10 years to 20 years. 
 
 "I've said this before: This didn't have to happen," Piazza's father, Jim Piazza, said at a news conference after the charges were announced. "This is the result of a feeling of entitlement, flagrant disobedience of the law and disregard for moral values that was then exacerbated by egregious acts of self-preservation. Again, this did not have to happen." 
 
 The State College-based school shut down the Beta chapter permanently following the Feb. 2 pledge event that led to Piazza's death. Police said he fell head first down 15 basement steps at around 11 p.m., but first responders were not called until almost 12 hours later. 
 
 Related: First of 37 Defendants Sentenced in Fatal Hazing Case 
 
 Four brothers allegedly carried him upstairs after the fall and placed him on a couch that night, but no one called 911 until the next morning. Piazza died at the hospital. 
 
 The coroner ruled Piazza's death accidental and said he sustained multiple traumatic injuries from the fall. 
 
 According to prosecutors, members of the fraternity testified to a grand jury that Beta was supposed to be a "dry" house, but alcohol was still consumed during its events. 
 
 Timothy Piazza (C) with his parents Evelyn Piazza (L) and James Piazza (R) on Oct. 31, 2014. Timothy died in February 2017 at a fraternity event at Penn State. Patrick Carns / AP 
 
 About 40 students lived at the house. Members partook in alcohol-filled festivities such as a Four Loko night and a cigar and beer night. 
 
 From Jan. 25 to Feb. 2, one Beta brother bought nearly $1,180 worth of alcohol, including Four Loko and Crown Russe vodka, prosecutors said. Text messages and a chat group called "we f--- moms" revealed members allegedly asking about buying alcohol, including for pledges, and collecting money for their so-called "slush fund." 
 
 During the pledge night event, the recruits were required to drink various types of alcohol at stations as part of a contest known as "the gauntlet," prosecutors said. 
 
 Cameras Capture Pledge Event 
 
 Surveillance footage from inside the house shows much of what was happening that night and the aftermath of Piazza's fall, according to the grand jury investigation. 
 
 The brothers first gathered in the house's "great hall" with the lights turned off, according to the report. Pledges wearing khakis, button-down shirts and sports jackets were led into the room and then back out before they started the "gauntlet." 
 
 The report describes the pledges engaging in heavy drinking, and Piazza at one point is seen swigging from a bottle of vodka and then consuming beer. 
 
 About 20 minutes later, a "visibly intoxicated" Piazza was assisted to a couch, but he got up and staggered toward the front door, detectives said. He was unable to open the front door and instead headed toward the basement steps. 
 
 Although the fall itself was not caught on camera, fraternity members told police that they heard a sound and then found Piazza lying unconscious on the landing with his legs still on the staircase. 
 
 One of the brothers said they needed to take Piazza to the hospital, but the others told him to leave the room, according to the report. 
 
 The Beta Theta Pi House at Penn State. WJAC-TV 
 
 They were seen on camera trying to slap him awake, and at one point, two of the brothers landed on top of his unconscious body. Piazza also vomited. The brothers became frustrated and one even struck Piazza "hard one time in the abdomen with his open right hand," detectives said. 
 
 Detectives said four of the brothers carried him upstairs. They tried to coax him up, but he did not respond. His arm was limp and he had a bruise on his chest. 
 
 Eventually, after midnight, Piazza became physically responsive and managed to move around. The brothers failed to provide any meaningful assistance, detectives said, even as Piazza staggered around and somehow managed to end up back on the basement floor. 
 
 At around 10 a.m., the brothers found him down there. One brother told investigators Piazza "felt cold to the touch, his skin appeared pale, and his eyes remained half-open." 
 
 Instead of calling 911, the brothers attempted to shake him, the report said. The brothers searched "falling asleep after a head injury" and "cold extremities in drunk person," according to a search of their cellphones by detectives. 
 
 It wasn't until 10:48 a.m. that one of the brothers finally called 911. Detectives said the brothers used a group chat discussion to come up with a plan to cover up what happened. 
 
 'Heart-Wrenching and Incomprehensible' 
 
 In a statement, the Beta Theta Pi International Fraternity called the charges "incredibly disheartening" and said it was standing by its decision to disband the chapter. 
 
 Fraternity leaders have "clearly and consistently expressed its position that it does not tolerate hazing or alcohol abuse in any form by its members," they said. "The former undergraduate members were well educated by the International Fraternity and Penn State on these policies; however, they are entitled to the presumption of innocence as they face these charges." 
 
 Penn State President Eric Barron added that the charges were "heart-wrenching and incomprehensible." 
 
 "All indicators suggested Beta Theta Phi was a model fraternity — the house, privately-owned and situated like all other fraternity houses on private property, was beautiful, the subject of a multi-million dollar renovation; both the Beta alumni and the national organization provided strict rules of behavior; and, the brothers had a no alcohol policy which stated that anyone caught drinking would be expelled," Barron said. "It is clear, however, this was no 'model' fraternity.'" 
 
 Piazza's death led to a number of changes on campus, including a ban on all social activities involving alcohol for the rest of the semester, monitoring at social events to prevent underage and excessive drinking, no hard liquor at events that allow for alcohol, and probation and immediate revocation of a Greek-letter chapter's status if rules are violated. 
 
 Barron said the university has since suspended Sigma Alpha Mu for two years for violating its alcohol-use policy.
– Eighteen fraternity members have been charged—eight of them with manslaughter—after a 19-year-old died during a pledging party in February at Penn State, the Washington Post reports. Video from security cameras inside the Beta Theta Pi frat helped authorities piece together the final hours of Timothy Piazza's life. Those findings, which Penn State's president calls "sickening," were released Friday. According to NBC News, it started with a drinking competition called "the gauntlet" in which Piazza and other pledges drank copious amounts of alcohol—despite Beta Theta Pi supposedly being a dry frat. Videos show Piazza unable to open a door and needing help to walk. Doctors estimate he had a BAC of nearly 0.40, the AP reports. After stumbling around, Piazza falls head first down a flight of stairs. Frat members carry him to a couch and attempt to wake him up, pouring water on him, slapping him, falling on him, and putting a backpack full of books on him. Prosecutors say frat members may have made Piazza's injuries worse. When one frat member says they need to take Piazza to the hospital, he is slammed against a wall and told to leave. Over the next 12 hours, Piazza would fall twice, hitting his head at least once, before falling down the flight of stairs a second time. Upon finding him at the bottom of the stairs in the morning, frat members waited 40 minutes before calling 911. During that time they were allegedly planning how to cover up what happened. "This did not have to happen," Piazza's father said Friday.