At least 12 former members of the famed Florida A&M marching band face charges of manslaughter in the 2011 death of drum major Robert Champion, those involved in the case said Monday.
A lawyer representing the parents of Pamela and Robert Champion Sr., Champion's parents, said 13 members have been charged.
The Orange-Osceola State Attorney's Office sent an e-mail to attorneys for 10 former band members at the Tallahassee school, notifying them that each would be charged with manslaughter in addition to felony hazing charges they already faced, the Orlando Sentinel reported.
The 10 had been charged with hazing, a third-degree felony, last spring. The charges to the additional band members came in recent days, said Christopher Chestnut, lawyer for the Champions.
The school said it would not respond because Champion's parents have filed a civil suit against the school and other parties.
"Due to the pending civil litigation, the University has no comment at this time," read a statement issued via e-mail by Sharon Saunders, FAMU's chief communications officer. Chestnut, who has offices in Gainesville, Ga., and in Atlanta, said he and the Champions learned of the upgraded charges after State Attorney Jeff Ashton contacted them last week. The four met via Skype and discussed the case. Ashton was the lead prosecutor in the 2011 case against Casey Anthony, charged in the death of her daughter, Caylee.
The Champions, who live Decatur, Ga., had complained when, initially, the case drew much lesser felony hazing charges. The couple is elated over the upgrade, Chestnut said.
"They are encouraged today," the lawyer said. "They applaud the courageous decision of the newly elected attorney, Mr. Ashton, in finally upgrading the charges to what we feel were appropriate charges. This was the sign of a true leader." Ashton's decision was "unsolicited" and "unprovoked" by any sentiments expressed by the Champions and came as a surprise, Chestnut said. "He (Ashton) felt that this was the appropriate charge, that Robert wasn't hurt by hazing, he was killed by hazing," Chestnut continued. Neither the Champions, nor Ashton's office could be reached for comment.
Champion, 26, died in November 2011 after enduring a hazing ritual conducted by other band members on a bus outside a hotel in Orlando where Florida A&M had played its archrival, Bethune Cookman, in football.
His death revealed a culture of hazing in the band, which has performed at Super Bowls and presidential inauguration parades. An autopsy concluded Champion suffered blunt trauma blows to his body and died from shock caused by severe bleeding. Champion's parents have said their son was a vocal opponent of the routine hazing in the band. They said last year that they were having a hard time believing their son volunteered to be hazed.
"He was murdered on that bus, and no one signs up for that," Pamela Champion said. Contributing: Donna Leinwand Leger