Law enforcement officials are trying to determine who is responsible for the death of a Baruch College freshman who died from injuries sustained in a fraternity pledging ritual.
Chun Hsieng Deng, 19, died Monday after participating in the fraternity ritual game called Glass Ceiling, the New York Times reported. The fraternity members from the New York City school were in the Poconos for the weekend.
Glass Ceiling is played outside and required Deng to wear a blindfold and carry heavy items on his back while he made his way toward someone calling for him. While he tried to navigate, other members were allowed to tackle him at will. Deng died from "major brain trauma" from "too many tackles."
Deng and four other pledges were on a weekend retreat in Tunkhannock Township, Pa., near Stroudsburg with 30 other members of the Pi Delta Psi fraternity. According to the Monroe County district attorney's office, Deng was unresponsive after an injury sustained early Sunday. The other fraternity members took him to an emergency room at a hospital in Wilkes-Barre.
The police and district attorney are investigating the death, especially the point in time between Deng's collapse and when the other members brought him to the hospital.
E. David Christine Jr., the county's district attorney, told the NYT about the Glass Ceiling game and that no members called an ambulance, nor was Deng given any medical treatment until arriving at the hospital.
The weekend trip was also not sanctioned by the school, according to Baruch president Mitchel B. Wallerstein.
"[Baruch College] had no knowledge of this event or that the fraternity was rushing a pledge class," he said. "Pi Delta Psi did not request permission nor were they approved by Baruch on this matter."
As part of City University of New York requirements, fraternities and sororities at Baruch must take a course on hazing dangers. According to a school spokeswoman, the groups are also required to sign statements indicating they understand and will adhere to the policies in place.
Deng, a finance major at Baruch, graduated from the Bronx High School of Science, where he was a member of the bowling and handball teams. Jerry Eng, the school's bowling coach remembers Deng as a focused and hard-working person, but not a good bowler at first.
"He really surprised me," Eng said. "The summer of his junior year he went to work on his bowling game and he worked really hard, and when he came back he basically was one of my top bowlers."
The coach said Deng's average score was 174 and his high was 223 out of a possible 300, adding "he basically carried us."
