The University Police Department arrested five students on charges of assault, hazing and larceny Friday in connection with the assault of a Sigma Pi fraternity member.
One misdemeanor is for hazing, for which the University has a zero tolerance policy. Tucker Cole Steil, a general studies major and Pi Kappa Alpha, was arrested on a felony-level charge of assault. James Declan Basile, a business student, was arrested on charges of assault, hazing and larceny. Christian Guy and Kyle Hughes, business majors, were arrested on charges of larceny. Austin Rice, engineering major, was arrested on charges of larceny as well.
Boyle, a junior accountancy major from Pennsylvania, was assaulted in the early morning of Oct. 6, suffering a concussion, several broken teeth, a ruptured eardrum and a lung contusion.
“It was shocking,” Brian Boyle, victim Jeremy Boyle’s father, told The Daily Mississippian. “There is a different culture in the South. People have good behavior. It’s not something you would have expected. Especially at Ole Miss.”
Brian Boyle said the most disconcerting thing about this was the students are still on campus.
“What we’re finding is the leniency we’ve had so far on these assailants,” Brian Boyle said. “That’s the biggest problem. They had gone through the university’s justice system and were for all intents and purposes, slapped on the wrist. In the mean time, you’ve got accused felons walking around the campus.”
The Daily Mississippian has asked the university police and administrators to comment for several days and will update this story as it develops.
