‘Boot Camp’ May Be Tied to UCLA Frat Injuries

Extreme physical exertion during a fraternity “boot camp” appears to be behind the recent hospitalization of three UCLA pledges, who campus police suspect may have been subjected to illegal hazing, authorities said Friday.

All three pledges suffered from severe exhaustion and dehydration, and the most severely injured of the three, 18-year-old freshman Marshall Lai, remains in critical condition at UCLA Medical Center with kidney problems, officials said.

The other two students were not identified. One was treated and released from UCLA Medical Center and the third is in a San Jose hospital, according to UCLA officials.

Details remain unclear about last weekend’s event, which school officials say was held by Omega Sigma Tau.

The fraternity, founded in 1966 by Asian American students, has about 80 active members. Unlike most Greek organizations at UCLA, the fraternity is not affiliated with any national chapter and does not have a house near campus where members can live and socialize.

Potential Omega pledges visiting the fraternity’s World Wide Web site are assured that “Omega pledges aren’t asked to do things that are dangerous, humiliating or inhumane.”

Investigators said they have no reason to believe that alcohol or other drugs were involved in the incident, just intense “physical calisthenics,” including running, push-ups, leg lifts and sit-ups.

“The exercise would have to be awfully, awfully severe exertion to put three 19- or 20-year-olds in the hospital,” said Robert Girandola, a professor of exercise science at USC.

Twenty-three other pledges who participated in the exercises experienced no health problems, and the injuries to the two unnamed pledges are not believed to be serious, officials said.

Several fraternity members refused to explain what happened in interviews, saying that a statement would not be released until the group’s president, who is out of the state, returns.

“I’m not really sure what happened--nobody is,” said fraternity member Eric Chen. “This is not how our fraternity operates. It’s based on community service. This is a freak incident. I don’t think it’s hazing. We don’t haze.”

So far, university investigators disagree. Capt. Alan Cueba of the UCLA Police Department said the injuries occurred as part of an “initiation process.”

But beyond the basic description, university officials released few details, and said they do not have a complete picture of what happened.

“There is a very strong bond of unity among students who are members of the same fraternity,” said university administrator Robert Naples. “The reality is we’re having a real hard time getting information here.”

If the police investigation concludes that hazing was responsible for the pledges’ injuries, the fraternity and its members could face penalties ranging from suspension to expulsion. There could be criminal consequences as well, Naples said.

“I want to be unequivocal in stating that the university deplores and condemns this type of activity,” UCLA Chancellor Albert Carnesale said in a statement.

Although UCLA fraternities have had their share of trouble in recent years, including two accidental drownings and allegations of gang rape that were eventually dropped, there have been no recent problems with fraternity hazing, school officials said.

To discourage hazing, UCLA requires the leaders of student organizations to sign a document agreeing not to haze.