Facing Hazing Accusations in West Virginia? Protect Your Academic Future

No matter where you live, being the subject of hazing accusations is a serious matter that can cause repercussions across your entire academic career—and even make starting your professional life much more difficult than it needs to be.

Students at West Virginia schools like West Virginia University (WVU), Marshall University, and Fairmont State University are aware of this. Anti-hazing language can be found in each of these schools' codes of conduct, and similar language likely appears in the rules and regulations of every school in the state. As a result, West Virginia schools are equipped with several ways they can make students' lives very difficult if those students are associated with hazing accusations (even if those accusations are roundly false!).

If you or a loved one is facing accusations of hazing, it's time to take action now to avoid suspension, expulsion, and permanent marks on your academic record. The Lento Law Firm's Student Defense Team is ready to assist. Call 888.535.3686 today or fill out this form now to tell us more about your case.

The (Exceedingly) High Stakes of Hazing Accusations

West Virginia's colleges and universities operate under the state's Anti-Hazing Law. In that law, hazing is defined as an action or situation that intentionally or recklessly endangers the safety or health (mental or physical) of a person for the purpose of initiating that person into a student organization.

As you may imagine, a wide range of activities can fall into this definition, from seemingly-harmless parties celebrating a new class of individuals into a student group to more in-depth initiating rites.

Under this definition, universities can pursue disciplinary action against students who are allegedly involved in hazing—no matter where the alleged hazing takes place. This can include off-campus events.

For example, WVU's code of conduct states the following:

“[Hazing] includes, but is not limited to, any brutality of a physical nature, such as whipping, beating, branding, forced consumption of any food, alcohol, drug or other substance, any activity which would subject an individual or individuals to extreme mental stress, such as sleep deprivation or forced exclusion from social contact.”

This type of language helps the university address hazing accusations quickly. Usually, demonstrating the truth of hazing accusations

relies on the “preponderance of the evidence” standard. This means that, as long as the evidence suggests that it's more likely than not that misconduct occurred, a student can be found responsible.

And, if a student is found responsible for hazing, they could risk a world of potential punishments and consequences—including:

• Immediate disciplinary action, which, depending on the severity of the alleged incident, could involve a long-term suspension or even expulsion from their institution (and, therefore, a possible end to their college careers).
• A permanent note on their academic record, which, even if you manage to dodge formal discipline, will follow you around from institution to institution and from job to job for years after the fact.
• The potential loss of any financial aid or scholarships you may have accrued, which, as an abrupt loss of funding, could place immense pressure on you and your family and could also bring your time at school to a quick and unexpected end.
• Damage to your reputation, so once people find out that you were associated with hazing (and they will), they'll be less likely to work with you on internships, professional licenses, and even academic, professional, and personal opportunities.
• Social and emotional consequences. Being associated with a hazing incident will be extremely stressful for you in the short and long term. This may cause you emotional distress, social isolation, and other challenges.

To avoid these repercussions after you've been accused of hazing (or if you suspect an accusation is imminent), it's key to get the help you need from the experienced student discipline defense team at the Lento Law Firm.

Here's Exactly Why You Need a Skillful Defense

The consequences of a hazing accusation are severe. The proof that your opposition needs to bring against you only needs to hit a certain, relatively low standard. Students accused of hazing in West Virginia will need lawyers at their side who have specific knowledge of the unique, complex, and high-stakes proceedings before them.

With our legal team at your side, you'll benefit in the following ways:

1. You'll be able to leverage direct expertise in student defense law and navigate the nuances of both school policies and any applicable local or state laws with confidence (and peace of mind).
2. You'll be able to select and implement the right, ultra-tailored defense strategy for you—a strategy that addresses your unique case and ensures that you're covered as well as possible from every relevant angle.
3. You'll be better equipped to navigate your school's disciplinary processes while making sure that your rights are upheld the entire time. (More on this in a moment.)
4. You'll be able to work with our team to ensure that your short-term experience with these allegations is as low-key as possible—and that your longer-term experience is as minimal as possible. We'll aggressively challenge any evidence against you and work with you to seek and support the best possible outcome.
5. You'll be able to diligently gather and present evidence that will be helpful to you and your position. This can help you support your innocence and mitigate any charges against you.

And you'll be able to do all this without miring yourself in the type of stress and emotional havoc that could wreck your mental health for years. Instead, the Student Defense Team at the Lento Law Firm will handle these actions for you—leaving you free to focus on spending time with those you love, your studies, on reputation recuperation, or other value-adding activities.

Your West Virginia School's Processes for Handling Your Allegations

So what does happen immediately after your school receives word that you could be involved with hazing allegations?

While the specific steps associated with your school's disciplinary response may be somewhat unique to your school, generally, here's what you can expect to happen:

• The initial report and notification. Your school's process will begin when someone (a faculty member, a student, or even someone who wasn't involved with the hazing at all) reports a hazing incident.
• Initial assessment. Your university's administration will review the details of your alleged actions. If your school decides to move forward with an investigation, at this point, you will be notified that you are associated with hazing allegations. You should receive a formal notification that includes the specific conduct policies at your university that you have ostensibly violated. Hang onto this notice—and, preferably, send a copy to your team at the Lento Law Firm.
• Potential interim measures. Depending on the nature of the allegations against you, your university may decide to impose interim measures against you to protect its academic community. The idea is that this happens in situations where the alleged hazing event was quite severe, but this can happen in any event. The type of interim measures to expect will vary but may include no-contact orders, activity restrictions, or even temporary suspensions.
• The investigation. Your university will take some time to learn as much as it can about the allegations. This may involve gathering evidence, talking to any witnesses or people otherwise involved in the hazing incident, and reviewing the relevant documents associated with the alleged initiators of the hazing (e.g., previous disciplinary records, academic records, and similar information).
• A disciplinary hearing. Once your school has completed its investigation, it may schedule a disciplinary hearing. This will likely involve a relatively stressful request to appear before a panel of school representatives, such as faculty members and administrators. During this hearing, the accused student and their representation will likely have a chance to provide their side of the story.
• A disciplinary decision from your school. At the end of the hearing or following it, your school's disciplinary panel will make a decision about the responsibility of the student in regard to the central hazing incident. Again, the typical standard used is the “preponderance of the evidence” standard—which means the panel must only determine that it's more likely than not that your student was involved in the hazing. If your school finds that your student was responsible for the hazing incident, the panel will then go on to determine the sanctions that may be appropriate for your student. These can range from a written warning to expulsion.

If you are not satisfied with the way that your school's processes have played out, you do not have to take this decision lying down.

Instead, you can file an appeal with your school.

Your Student Defense Team from the Lento Law Firm will help you come up with an appropriate rationale for your appeal. Typically, strong bases for appeals include new evidence that was not available at the time of the initial hearing, procedural errors that you can clearly demonstrate, or even an argument that the sanction your school recommended did not fit the alleged crime. You will usually only have a small number of business days (perhaps 10) to respond, so having the help of the Lento Law Firm to determine grounds for your appeal will be vital.

After your appeal, your school's decision will be final.

Of course, this still does not mean you need to take an unfair decision and let that affect the rest of your child's life. Our team can help you pursue any points of escalation that may be appropriate at this stage.

Worried About Hazing Allegations at Your WV School? Here's What You and Your Lawyer Will Do Next

If you're concerned about the potential consequences that hazing allegations could have for you or your student at your West Virginia school, know this: Informed, quick action will make all the difference for you.

Here's your roadmap for what you're going to do next:

Immediately schedule a consultation with the Student Defense Team at the Lento Law Firm.

Hazing accusations and the subsequent proceedings can get out of hand very quickly. Having our team on your side from the very beginning is the best way to help you ensure that your student's rights are protected at once.

Our team will help you:

• Preserve evidence, including any texts, emails, photos, videos, or any other types of documentation
• Understand the policies and procedures at your school. Every West Virginian school, from WVU to smaller institutions like Fairmont State University, will have its own set of processes and regulations. These can be inscrutable. We'll help you understand them, hold your school accountable to them, and help you move forward.
• Prepare for any stressful hearings, meetings, and appeals that may come your way. Depending on the circumstances of your hearing, you may or may not be able to bring your representation with you. Our team can help coach you in the best way to present your case, what questions to expect, the best way to respond to questions, and more so you can enter your hearing confident and prepared.

Ultimately, our goal will be to help you protect your academic future.

With the right legal strategy, it can be possible to mitigate the consequences associated with high-stakes hazing accusations. Interested in taking the first step toward a successful outcome for your student? Contact the Lento Law Firm's Student Defense Team today by calling 888.535.3686 or fill out this brief form to tell us about your case.