An Ohio judge has sentenced three men to prison in connection to the March 2021 hazing death of 20-year-old Bowling Green State University sophomore Stone Foltz, while two were granted sentences of house arrest, according to reports.
Foltz, who hailed from Delaware, “died of alcohol poisoning after a fraternity initiation event in which he was hazed into finishing an entire bottle of alcohol,” authorities said, per the Associated Press.
WTOL reported:
He was attending an off-campus Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity event where new members “littles” received mentors from the older fraternity members. Court documents show those older members gave new members liquor and told them to drink the whole bottle.
Foltz allegedly drank all or nearly all of his bottle before he was dropped off at his apartment and found unresponsive by his roommate and other friends. They called 911 and tried to save his life, but Foltz ultimately died March 7, 2021.
The alcohol in question was “a liter of Evan Williams bourbon,” according to the Dispatch. The Associated Press noted authorities maintained he died of alcohol poisoning.
The sentencing of the five — Daylen Dunson, 22, Niall Sweeney, 21, Ben Boyers, 21, Jarrett Prizel, 19, and Aaron Lehane, 21, came down Thursday from Wood County Common Pleas Judge Joel Kuhlman, the Columbus Dispatch reported. All five were brothers of the fraternity, and Sweeney, Prizel, and Dunson, who was the Pi Kappa Alpha International Bowling Green chapter president — were sentenced to prison time.
Dunson, of Ohio, entered a guilty plea to charges of reckless homicide, hazing, and tampering with evidence, and received a 21-day sentence followed by “three years of probation,” the Associated Press reported. Kuhlman imposed a sentence of 14 days in jail for Sweeney of Pennsylvania, accompanied by two years of probation following his guilty plea on charges of hazing and tampering with evidence. Prizel, of New York, had pleaded guilty to reckless homicide and hazing, landing him a 28-day prison sentence, followed by a two-year period of probation. Dunson, Sweeney, and Prizel will be placed on a month-long house arrest upon the completion of prison time.
“Boyers and Lehane were each sentenced to 28 days of house arrest and two years’ probation,” the Associated Press noted. Boyers, of Ohio, had entered a guilty plea to reckless homicide, hazing, and obstructing justice, while Lehane, also of Ohio, pleaded guilty to obstructing official business, tampering with evidence, and hazing.
“Canyon Caldwell, 21, of Dublin, was convicted on one count of obstructing justice and eight counts of misdemeanor hazing,” though he was not among the five sentenced Thursday, the Dispatch noted. His sentence is pending and will be imposed in June.
Two others — Jacob Krinn and Troy Henrickson, both of Ohio — were recently convicted following a trial in connection to Foltz’s death, WOTL reported. Henricksen was found guilty of numerous counts of hazing and failure to comply with underage alcohol laws, while Krinn was also convicted of failure to comply with underage alcohol laws as well as obstructing official business. Their sentences will come down in July.