Last 3 Defendants Are Convicted in Hazing Death of Fla. A&M Student

A jury took just three hours on Friday to convict the final three defendants in the hazing death of a Florida A&M University student, the Orlando Sentinel and the Associated Press reported.

The defendants — Darryl Cearnel, Aaron Golson, and Benjamin McNamee — were convicted of manslaughter and felony hazing in the death of Robert Champion in November 2011. Mr. Champion, the drum major in the university’s famed marching band, suffered fatal injuries when he was hit, kicked, and punched by a group of band members led by Dante Martin, who was convicted last year and sentenced to 77 months in prison.

The men found guilty on Friday face prison terms of as much as 15 years each on the manslaughter charge, five years on the hazing charge.

A total of some 15 people, all students, were charged in the case, and the others have pleaded guilty or no contest to charges in connection with it. Mr. Champion’s death also resulted in the retirement of the band’s director and the resignation of the university’s president.