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The former president of a Virginia Commonwealth University fraternity has been found guilty of hazing in connection with the death of a student from alcohol poisoning last year, WRIC reported.
As president of Delta Chi fraternity, Jason Mulgrew helped organize the off-campus party where freshman Adam Oakes consumed a lethal amount of alcohol in February 2021. Mulgrew pleaded no contest in Richmond Circuit Court Thursday.
Mulgrew was one of 11 fraternity members charged with hazing and the third to be found guilty of the crime, which is a misdemeanor in Virginia.
Under the plea agreement, Mulgrew avoids jail time but must perform 150 hours of community service, engage in a restorative justice program with the Oakes family, participate in 10 antihazing presentations to the community and complete 12 months of supervised probation and good behavior.
The Oakes family said in a statement read in court that it doesn’t forgive Mulgrew yet but forgiveness can be earned, The Richmond Times-Dispatch reported. It urged him to educate others about the dangers of hazing.
“Adam deserved better friends than you,” the family said. “Obviously brotherhood has a very different meaning to us than it does to you and the brothers of Delta Chi.”
