Hazing death trial ends in split verdict for Ohio frat brothers

Two fraternity brothers at an Ohio university were found not guilty of manslaughter Friday but convicted on lesser hazing charges.

Jacob Krinn and Troy Henricksen had been charged in the death of Stone Foltz at Bowling Green State University in March 2021.

Six of their fellow brothers in Pi Kappa Alpha were initially charged alongside Krinn and Henricksen but pleaded guilty to various charges.

Krinn, now 21, was convicted of hazing, failure to comply with underage alcohol laws, and obstructing official business, the Columbus Dispatch reported. He was acquitted on charges of first-degree involuntary manslaughter, third-degree involuntary manslaughter, reckless homicide, and felonious assault.

Henricksen, now 24, was found guilty of obstructing justice, eight counts of hazing and seven counts of failure to comply with underage alcohol laws, according to the Dispatch. He was found not guilty of first-degree involuntary manslaughter, reckless homicide, tampering with evidence and obstructing justice.

The eight Pi Kappa Alpha members were all part of a “Big Brother Little Brother” initiation that involved excessive alcohol consumption. Henricksen was the one who planned the hazing ritual, but he wasn’t at the off-campus house that night. Krinn was Foltz’s “big brother.”

Foltz, 20 years old at the time, was handed a one-liter bottle of Evan Williams bourbon on March 4, 2021, and told he couldn’t leave the fraternity house until he finished it. Foltz reportedly finished the bottle in just 20 minutes.

Krinn took Foltz home afterward. His roommate later found Foltz unconscious and took him to a hospital. Foltz died March 7 of fatal alcohol intoxication.

Ohio’s state legislature later passed a law that made hazing a felony, but Krinn and Henricksen weren’t charged under it because Foltz’s death happened before the law passed. The young men will be sentenced this summer.