Five of Stone Foltz's former Bowling Green State University fraternity brothers sentenced

Five former Bowling Green State University fraternity brothers convicted of hazing Stone Foltz were sentenced Thursday by Wood County Common Pleas Judge Joel Kuhlman.

Daylen Dunson, 22, of Cleveland, previously pleaded guilty to reckless homicide, tampering with evidence and obstructing justice, all third-degree felonies; and eight counts of hazing, seven counts of failure to comply with underage alcohol laws and one count of obstructing official business, all misdemeanors.

Dunson served as president of Bowling Green's chapter of Pi Kappa Alpha International fraternity, better known as PIKE.

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Foltz, a 20-year-old sophomore from Delaware, Ohio, was rushing the fraternity in early 2021. As part of the pledging process, Foltz attended a "Big Little Night" initiation event March 4, 2021, during which he drank a liter of Evan Williams Bourbon. He died several days later of fatal alcohol intoxication.

In an emotional plea, Foltz’s father, Cory, asked Judge Kuhlman to sentence the men to the maximum allowed under Ohio law.

Kuhlman sentenced Dunson to 21 days in jail, followed by 28 days of house arrest and then three years of probation.

In Ohio, reckless homicide is punishable by up to five years in prison and $10,000 in fines.

Jarrett Prizel, 19, of Olean, New York, pleaded guilty to reckless homicide and eight counts of hazing. He was the first to enter such a plea in connection with Foltz's death. Prizel was sentenced to 28 days in jail, starting July 18, along with 28 days house arrest and two years probation.

Ben Boyers, 21, of Sylvania, near Toledo, Ohio, pleaded guilty to third-degree felony reckless homicide, fifth-degree felony obstructing justice and eight counts of misdemeanor hazing. He was sentenced to 28 days of house arrest and two years probation.

Niall Sweeney, 21, of Erie, Pennsylvania, pleaded guilty to felony tampering with evidence and hazing. He was given a two-week sentence in jail, 28 days of house arrest and two years of probation.

Aaron Lehane, 21, of Loveland, Ohio, pleaded guilty to hazing, tampering with evidence and obstructing official business. He was also sentenced to 28 days of house arrest and two years probation.

All of the men sentenced Thursday were also ordered to complete 100 hours of community service, 10 hours of which, Kuhlman said, the court will credit for any anti-hazing related activities they complete.

Dunson and Prizel are also required to finish their college degree as a part of their probation.

Three other men have yet to be sentenced.

Jacob Krinn, 21, of Delaware, and Troy Henricksen, 24, of Grove City, stood trial last month in Wood County Common Pleas Court, and were convicted by a jury of several lesser charges:

• Krinn was found guilty of hazing, failure to comply with underage alcohol laws and obstructing official business, all misdemeanors.

• Henricksen was found guilty of eight counts of hazing and seven counts of failure to comply with underage alcohol laws, all misdemeanors.

The jury found them not guilty of several more severe felony charges, including involuntary manslaughter, reckless homicide and felonious assault.

Krinn and Henricksen will be sentenced in July.

Canyon Caldwell, 21, of Dublin, Ohio, was convicted on one count of obstructing justice and eight counts of misdemeanor hazing.

Caldwell previously was indicted on involuntary manslaughter and tampering with evidence, both third-degree felonies; obstructing justice, eight counts of hazing, seven counts of failure to comply with underage alcohol laws and obstructing official business.

The involuntary manslaughter charge against Caldwell was dismissed, and the tampering with evidence charge was reduced to obstruction, a fifth-degree felony. That charge carries with a maximum sentence of one year in prison.

All of Caldwell's remaining misdemeanors were also dismissed. He will be sentenced later this month.

Parents of Stone Foltz: No closure until hazing is stopped on campuses

Foltz's parents, Shari and Cory, said after Thursday's sentencings that while this may be the conclusion for the men who were convicted, there will be no closure for their family until hazing is eradicated from college campuses.

“Universities and Greek organizations must be held accountable for creating and supporting environments that allow hazing to thrive. Stone and countless other students have been tragically injured or killed because people in power refuse to protect them," they said in a statement. "We fully intend to take steps to require all Ohio universities to actively enforce their policies so that hazing, which is rampant on their campuses, ends for good. There is no other acceptable alternative for Stone or our family.”

Rex Elliot and Sean Alto, Columbus-based attorneys for the Foltz family, said there are no winners in this case.

“These young men now have criminal records that will follow them for the rest of their lives. Their acts were senseless and completely preventable," they said. "But these young men were acting within a system created for them by adults."

Elliot and Alto agree with the Foltzes that hazing has been tolerated by universities and Greek organizations on campuses for too long, and that real change needs to take place in order to save young lives.

"We are committed to doing everything we can within our justice system to hold those in power, including the University, accountable for their inaction and woeful failure to end hazing on campus," they said.

Sheridan Hendrix is a higher education reporter at the Columbus Dispatch. You can reach her at shendrix@dispatch.com. You can follow her on Twitter at @sheridan120. Sign up for her Mobile Newsroom newsletter here and her education newsletter here.

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Five BGSU students sentenced in hazing death of Stone Foltz