Independent archive. Not affiliated with UW–Madison or Alpha Epsilon Pi. Arrests are not convictions.
MADISON2

Charged with lesser crimes
Not suspended from university

The alleged abusers were charged with the lesser crimes and were not suspended by the university

  • Hazing
    Tentative charge · Misdemeanor

    Charged against both arrested chapter officers. Wisconsin law prohibits organized hazing — conduct required of a student as part of joining or staying in an organization that endangers them.

  • Disorderly conduct
    Tentative charge · Misdemeanor

    Charged against both arrested chapter officers. Police declared the event unlawful on the scene.

Hazing involving alleged shitting, forced consumption of shit, and throwing shit on pledges

Zoomed and brightened crop of the front-center area of the police photograph showing pledges seated in heavy soiling and debris; faces pixelated
Zoomed crop of the police photograph, front-center. Faces pixelated in the original police release. AI tools allowed us to enhance the police image and detect potential feces (shit) on the pledge's body.

Hold abusers fully accountable

Each row describes what an alleged act could mean legally if substantiated. Items marked unverified come from social media or online claims, not from police. None is attributed to any named person. The order reflects potential severity if substantiated, not a definitive ranking of charges; actual severity depends on the evidence, injuries, and circumstances.

  1. 01Physical beatings or assaults against pledges
    • Battery: intentionally causing bodily harm without consent. More serious battery charges would depend on the extent of any injury and what the evidence establishes.
    • Reckless injury or reckless endangerment: possible if reckless conduct caused serious injury or created a substantial risk of serious harm.
  2. 02Forcing pledges to consume human feces (social-media allegation; unverified)
    • Hazing: possible if forced consumption was part of an initiation that endangered a student.
    • Battery or reckless endangerment: possible if the conduct caused bodily harm without consent or created a substantial risk of serious harm. Exposure, coercion, and medical findings would matter.
  3. 03Possible forced ingestion of other substances
    • No particular additional substance has been confirmed in the public police account.
    • Hazing, battery, or reckless endangerment: possible if evidence establishes forced consumption that endangered a student, caused bodily harm without consent, or created a substantial risk of serious harm. The substance, amount, and medical consequences would matter.
  4. 04Possible confinement or preventing pledges from leaving
    • False imprisonment: possible if someone intentionally confined or restrained a student without consent and without lawful authority.
    • Being found in a basement does not by itself prove confinement. Evidence that exits were blocked, departure was prevented, or students were restrained would matter.
  5. 05Forcing pledges to drink laxatives (social-media allegation; unverified)
    • Hazing: possible if students were forced to consume laxatives as part of an initiation that endangered their health.
    • Battery or reckless endangerment: possible if the conduct caused bodily harm without consent or created a substantial risk of serious harm. Medical evidence and the amount consumed would matter.
  6. 06Throwing or smearing feces on pledges (online claims; unverified)
    • Hazing: possible if this treatment occurred during an initiation that endangered students.
    • Battery: possible if the contact intentionally caused bodily harm without consent. Reckless endangerment would require evidence of a substantial risk of serious harm.
  7. 07Forcing pledges to defecate into one another's hands (social-media allegation; unverified)
    • Hazing: possible if students were coerced into this degrading activity during an initiation that endangered their health.
    • Battery: possible if the conduct involved intentional bodily harm without consent. Humiliation alone does not establish battery.
  8. 08Threatening pledges with beatings if they refused to participate
    • Hazing: possible if threats were used to force participation in an initiation activity that endangered a student.
    • Threat-related charges would depend on exactly what was said, how it was communicated, and the circumstances. A threat alone does not establish every possible offense.
  9. 09Keeping pledges in hot, humid basement conditions
    • Police reported a thermostat setting of 81°F (27.2°C); that temperature alone does not establish a dangerous situation.
    • Hazing or reckless endangerment: possible if evidence shows organizers exposed students to dangerous conditions during initiation. Duration, ventilation, symptoms, and the actual risk of serious harm would matter.
  10. 10Forcing pledges to partially undress
    • Police observed students partially clothed, but that observation alone does not establish that anyone forced them to undress.
    • Hazing: possible if forced undressing was part of an initiation that endangered students. Partial nudity alone does not establish sexual assault.
  11. 11Covering pledges in food, condiments, and unidentified liquids
    • Police observations describe students covered in food and liquids; the substances and how they were applied remain important.
    • Hazing: possible if the activity was part of an initiation that endangered students. Battery would depend on evidence of intentional bodily harm without consent, not merely unwanted contact.
  12. 12Humiliation or degrading treatment during initiation
    • Hazing: possible if degrading treatment during initiation endangered students. Humiliation by itself does not establish every element of a charge.
    • Other possible charges would depend on evidence of bodily harm, specific threats, or confinement without consent—not simply on the activity being offensive.
  13. 13Disorderly conduct
    • A misdemeanor charge covering conduct that endangers or obstructs other people, or is unreasonably disruptive. It is often the charge filed when behaviour is clearly wrong but the evidence does not fit a more serious offence.
    • Police booked both students on tentative charges of hazing and disorderly conduct, so this is the only item on this list already on the record — and the least serious one.

Tentative charges are accusations, not findings of guilt. Every listed person is presumed innocent unless formal charges are filed and proven in court.

Documents & Evidence

Materials

Every record and image this archive is built on, in one place. Nothing here originates with this site — each item is a public record or published reporting, linked to where it was released.

Not available yet
  • Court filings — no formal charges had been filed as of September 25, 2026.
  • Photographs of the two arrested students — none has been released by police or the university.
  • University disciplinary outcome — the conduct office investigation was still open.
  • Photos or video from inside the basement — only the blurred image MPD released.

Items are added only when they come from police records, the university or published reporting.

Case File

Sources