California has a long history of hazing incidents. The state anti-hazing law, Matt's Law, is even named for a former victim. If you're attending college in the Los Angeles area, it's important to be aware of your university's policies on hazing so that you can avoid disciplinary action.
But what if you've already been reported for hazing? At that point, you'll need to know your rights and start preparing to defend your future. The Lento Law Firm Team can help you throughout the investigation. If you're attending school in Los Angeles, Long Beach, or Anaheim, California, and face disciplinary action, give our attorneys a call at 888-535-3686 or fill out our confidential form to find out how we can help you.
How Matt's Law Impacts Southern California Students
Named for Matt Carrington, a 21-year-old student who fell victim to hazing, Matt's Law expanded hazing penalties to include felony prosecutions. That means in the state, a hazing incident that leads to serious injury or death could result in jail time.
Even if criminal charges aren't imposed, though, colleges have their own sanctions for hazing activity. Those sanctions can vary widely from one university to the next, so it's important that students familiarize themselves with both their school's code of conduct and its disciplinary process.
Defining Hazing in Southern California
Whether you attend the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) or one of the California State University (Cal State) campuses in Los Angeles, Long Beach, or Anaheim, your code of conduct includes a definition of hazing. Los Angeles area colleges tend to adopt the state definition of hazing, which considers it a method of initiation into a student body in a way likely to cause serious bodily injury.
UCLA defers to the state definition of hazing, but its anti-hazing policy gives specific examples. These initiation activities are prohibited when the possibility of serious physical or mental harm exists:
- Use of alcohol
- Paddling
- Line-ups
- Forcing excess fatigue
- Physical and psychological shocks
- Kidnapping, quests, scavenger hunts, or similar activities
- Forcing someone to wear clothing that's in poor taste
- Morally degrading games and activities
California State University has campuses in Los Angeles, Long Beach, and Fullerton. The Fullerton campus has a satellite location in Anaheim. Students attending Cal State at any campus should pay attention to Cal State's anti-hazing policy, which also restates the state's definition. The school does not define specific hazing activities in its policy.
Greek Organizations at UCLA
UCLA takes a proactive approach to hazing prevention. All Greek organizations are required to submit documents detailing their membership recruitment and intake activities on an ongoing basis. Without the documentation, organizations cannot conduct any intake activities.
Once submitted, UCLA's Greek organizations are expected to stick strictly to the list they provided. Any diversion from this list of activities can result in disciplinary action for the entire organization, including but not limited to:
- Interim suspension of all member activities
- Interim suspension of all chapter activities
- Loss of privileges
- Loss of chapter recognition
Organizations at California State University
Cal State at Dominguez Hills also holds organizations to an anti-hazing policy. Each organization must submit an acknowledgment confirming that all members have been made aware of California's laws regarding hazing.
Additionally, each student organization, along with its officers, must participate in at least one risk management workshop every semester. Advisors to all organizations must submit written acknowledgment of Cal State's anti-hazing policy.
UCLA's Investigation Process
At UCLA, the dean of students reviews any incoming misconduct reports to determine if disciplinary action is necessary. If the dean sees sufficient reason to proceed, the student will receive a notice that includes a brief statement of the allegations, the policy that was supposedly violated, and directions on next steps. Students have five days to schedule an initial meeting with the Office of Student Conduct.
At the initial meeting, you'll be given more in-depth information about the accusations and the opportunity to respond. At the end of the meeting, the dean will make a decision. The dean will either dismiss the charges, issue a letter of admonition, refer the issue to the student conduct committee for another hearing, or impose one of the following disciplinary sanctions:
- Warning
- Exclusion from campus areas or functions
- Exclusion from campus housing
- Loss of privileges
- Exclusion from activities
- Community service
- Restitution
- Letter of apology
- Participation in a restorative justice conference
- Withholding of diplomas or degrees
- Disciplinary action
- Deferred suspension
- Deferred dismissal
- Suspension
- Dismissal
- Degree revocation
Cal State's Investigation Process
Cal State's disciplinary procedures vary from one campus to the next. The L.A. campus's disciplinary investigations start in the senior associate dean of students' office. Within ten days, all alleged participants and the associated organization will be notified of the allegations.
At the end of the investigation, the dean will decide on disciplinary sanctions. Those may include:
- Restitution
- Loss of financial aid
- Educational and remedial sanctions
- Denial of access to campus
- Disciplinary probation
- Suspension
- Expulsion
Disciplinary Appeals at UCLA
UCLA allows appeals for the following sanctions:
- Deferred suspension
- Deferred dismissal
- Suspension
- Dismissal
Appeals are only allowed if the punishment doesn't fit the alleged infraction. You'll need to address your appeal to the vice chancellor of student affairs or a designee and clearly articulate the grounds for your appeal. You have five days from the notice of the dean's decision to submit your appeal in writing, either by email or mail. Your sanction will be on hold until you hear back with a final decision.
Disciplinary Appeals at Cal State
At Cal State, appeals are covered under the chancellor's executive order for student discipline, which states that notice of your right to appeal will be included with the decision letter. You'll have ten working days after the date on the decision letter to appeal.
As with UCLA, your appeal will need to state your reason for appealing. Also like UCLA, Cal State limits appeals to situations where the student believes the sanctions weren't in line with the alleged violation, but you can also file an appeal if you believe errors happened during the original investigation or hearing.
Evidence and Los Angeles Hazing Investigations
At both UCLA and Cal State, officials use something called preponderance of the evidence to determine whether an offense has been committed. What does that mean? It means that unlike a criminal court, where someone is innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, all officials at a university need is to see a greater than 50 percent chance that the student is guilty of the allegations.
This can be bad news for both individuals and their respective organizations after a hazing accusation. Even if nothing happened, if the investigator reviews the evidence and talks to witnesses and decides it did, everyone involved could face serious consequences.
Consequences of Hazing Allegations in Los Angeles
Hazing allegations can have serious consequences, no matter what disciplinary action you face. Here are some repercussions you might see after a hazing accusation:
- Academic impact: The distraction of a hazing allegation can immediately affect your academic performance. But if you're suspended, you'll face setbacks in your academic progression. If you're expelled, those setbacks can get in the way of the degree you've been working toward.
- Disciplinary record: Your academic file is a permanent record. At some point, an employer may want to see that record. If you ever transfer to another school or pursue a graduate degree, that mark on your record could get in the way.
- Reputation damage: Even before the investigation is complete, word can get out about the hazing incident. But if you're disciplined over the alleged activity, you could find that it damages your personal and professional relationships for a while.
- Loss of housing: If you're staying in on-campus housing, a hazing charge could leave you scrambling for an alternate place to stay with little notice.
- Loss of access to organizations: A hazing accusation may result in you being ejected from your favorite organization or extracurricular activity. You may also find that the organization that hosted the hazing activity faces sanctions, leading to the entire organization being placed on probation or losing privileges.
Why a Criminal Attorney Isn't Enough
If you face criminal or even civil charges related to hazing, you'll be dealing with the court system. The attorney you choose to represent you will be familiar with that system and know what you need to do to defend yourself against allegations. Unfortunately, though, many hazing cases never make it in front of a judge. Instead, you'll be going through a typically long-established disciplinary process, overseen by administrators who likely have no legal training. A university's disciplinary process has its own set of rules and they differ from what you'll see in the courtroom.
One of the biggest differences between the two is that universities have a lower burden of proof than the court system. Whereas a judge will want attorneys to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that an offense was committed, a university will go by something called a preponderance of the evidence standard. This means the university will simply need to see that it is more likely than not that the offense was committed.
Additionally, universities aren't bound by the same rules of evidence that make court cases easier on defendants. While hearsay and biased documentation may be tossed out by a judge, a university investigation will likely use those very things to come to a decision.
The Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team has years of experience with university disciplinary processes and is prepared to help. We can explain the allegations and work with you to prepare for meetings, hearings, and responses to questions throughout the investigation process. Even if you're working with a criminal attorney, our team can help you throughout the university investigation.
How the Lento Law Firm Education Law Team Can Help
When a disciplinary investigation threatens to derail your education, it's important to have the right partner. The Lento Law Firm focuses on education law so that we can help with these cases. When you reach out to our team, here's what you'll get:
- Experience and information: University notifications can be vague. We're familiar with both the language of these notices and school codes of conduct. We can take a look at your specific situation and use our years of experience to help you know what to expect.
- Protecting your rights: We believe in protecting students' rights during the disciplinary process. We'll help you understand those rights and work to defend those rights throughout the investigation and during any subsequent appeals.
- Skilled responses: Throughout the investigation, you'll likely be asked to craft written responses. Those responses can make a difference in the end results. We'll work with you to ensure each response addresses all relevant issues using a professional tone.
- Evidence gathering: Documentation can make a big difference in a hazing investigation. The investigator will be gathering information, and any information you can provide can be a big help. We'll work with you to track down any messages, witness statements, and recordings that support your side of the story.
- Preparation for meetings: Whether you're meeting with the investigator or going in front of campus administration in a more formal hearing, we can help you prepare. We'll walk you through how to answer the questions you're most likely to be asked.
The Lento Law Firm and Hazing Accusations
For students attending UCLA or Cal State, hazing accusations can be stressful. But the Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team has your back. We can help you navigate disciplinary processes on any Los Angeles, Long Beach, or Anaheim-area campus, whether it's a satellite campus or the main UCLA campus. Give us a call at 888-535-3686 or complete our contact form to get in touch with us.
