Family of hazing victim Stone Foltz to be awarded damages against former Bowling Green fraternity president
Watch a previous report of the Foltz family settling with Bowling Green in the video player above.
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) – The former president of a fraternity where Bowling Green State University student Stone Foltz died during a hazing incident will soon learn how much money he owes Foltz’ family in damages.
Foltz’s parents are scheduled to testify to a Franklin County magistrate Thursday afternoon that 23-year-old Daylen Dunson, who was the president of Bowling Green’s Pi Kappa Alpha chapter when Foltz died, should pay steep compensatory and punitive damages for his role in their son’s death. The court ruled against Dunson by default on all counts, including negligence and intentional infliction of emotional distress, because he never responded to the Foltz family’s wrongful death lawsuit.
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Foltz, from Delaware, Ohio, was 20 years old when, during a fraternity pledge event in March 2021, PIKE members ordered him and other prospective members to each drink a liter of liquor. Fraternity members then dropped Foltz off at his apartment, where he was found unresponsive. He died of alcohol poisoning after spending several days on life support.
Dunson pleaded guilty in May 2022 to reckless homicide, tampering with evidence, obstructing justice and multiple counts of misdemeanor hazing, among other charges. After spending 21 days in jail, he was ordered to 28 days of house arrest and three years of probation. Five other fraternity members pleaded guilty to various charges related to Foltz’ death, while a jury convicted two others of hazing.
In 2021, Foltz’s parents, Shari and Cory, filed a wrongful death suit against the fraternity, Dunson and more than a dozen other fraternity members, several of whom faced criminal charges alongside Dunson. All other defendants, as well as the university, have settled with the family for a total of $11.4 million, according to court filings.
But Dunson never responded to the complaint, nor its three amended versions. In July 2023, Judge Julie Lynch ruled against Dunson by default.
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In court filings, the Foltz family urged the court to award them hefty damages to send a message against what they described as “archaic behavior.” In a statement, Shari and Cory Foltz said the pain caused by their son’s death was still fresh, nearly three years later.
“We urge fraternity members, students, and all individuals to take a stand against hazing. It is not a rite of passage; it is a crime,” the Foltzes said. “We will continue to fight for justice for Stone and to ensure that no other family must endure the pain and loss that we have experienced.”
Dunson is a personal trainer and bodybuilder, according to his social media accounts. He did not respond to a request for comment and blocked an NBC4 reporter on social media after being contacted for this story.
Bowling Green revoked the PIKE chapter’s student organization status in April 2021. According to Bowling Green’s hazing violations report, 21 students were academically sanctioned related to Foltz’s death, with penalties ranging from deferred suspension to expulsion.
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Three months after Foltz died, Gov. Mike DeWine signed Collin’s Law, increasing penalties and creating a felony for hazing that causes serious harm and involves drugs or alcohol. The law is named for Collin Wiant, an Ohio University student who died during a hazing incident in 2018.
Collin’s Law also requires colleges and universities to offer hazing prevention training and publicly report anti-hazing violations every fall and spring semester.
Franklin County Magistrate Jennifer Hunt will preside over the court hearing at 1:30 p.m. A judge will need to approve her damages order before it is finalized.
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