Milledgeville police dismiss hazing allegations at GCSU, say no evidence of crime

The Milledgeville Police Department has concluded its investigation inquiry into alleged hazing involving two fraternities at Georgia College & State University, determining that no criminal charges will be filed after investigators found no violations of Georgia law.

The police investigation centered on suspended chapters of Kappa Alpha Order and Kappa Sigma, which university officials placed on interim suspension on Sept. 26 after allegations arose involving alcohol and hazing

In correspondence shared with The Telegraph Tuesday afternoon, police said their investigation included a review of documents, photos, and videos provided by the university, as well as interviews with two potential victims.

“Neither of the individuals interviewed described any actions that would constitute a violation of Georgia’s hazing statute or any other state law,” Maj. Brandon Sellers said in an email in response to an open records request.

At the time of the announcement, Sellers and school officials confirmed that no allegations of physical harm were made.

After Milledgeville police consulted with the Ocmulgee Judicial Circuit district attorney and the Baldwin County solicitor general, authorities determined a formal investigation was not necessary. No arrests have been made, and no criminal charges were filed, Sellers said.

The inquiry focused on possible hazing at the Kappa Alpha house on South Liberty Street, though some interviews took place at a property on S. Liberty Street, which is not the fraternity’s house but was linked to the reported events, according to an Oct. 6 letter that Milledgeville Police Chief Dray Swicord sent to the university’s director of public safety chief, Wesley Herdin

“The individuals we interviewed did not feel a crime had been committed against them,” Swicord wrote. “They expressed frustration with having to continually discuss the activities in question and were adamant that they wanted to put the matter behind them, indicating they did not intend to cooperate if the case moved forward.”

Police said the review is now suspended but could be reopened if new evidence or additional complainants emerge.

While under interim suspension, both fraternities are prohibited from engaging in any group activities, campus operations, or university events.

Georgia College & State University spokesperson Amanda Respess said that while no arrests were made, the findings will be reviewed by the dean of students to determine whether any honor code violations occurred that could require disciplinary action.

Respess could not confirm whether or not the two fraternities were still on suspension prior to publication.

What were the hazing allegations?

Sellers said Milledgeville police received an array of allegations from GCSU.

Police said concerns generally involved pledges being influenced to drink excessively, being required to clean areas that were excessively dirty and then perform tests to verify cleanliness, and being required to purchase what was described as an excessive amount of cleaning supplies. “As we looked into these allegations, it became clear that while some of the tasks required of the pledges were probably childish and not very funny, nothing rose to the level of a criminal violation,” Sellers said.

“One of the individuals we interviewed probably summarized it best by saying, ‘The things we were asked to do were immature and aggravating,’” Sellers added.

While Georgia College & State University was proper in referring the allegations they received to police, it appears that the information, “as it was initially presented to college personnel, was exaggerated for attention, and those issues were clarified once we completed our review,” Sellers said.