An investigation into allegations of branding and waterboarding involving two women’s sports teams at Norwich University has led to six students facing civil violations for hazing, with three among them facing criminal charges.
Northfield Police launched its probe last month after receiving a report on March 20 from a member of the women’s rugby team, identified in court records as Amanda Lodi, that she was threatened by a person with a knife in a dorm room at the college.
In an interview with police two days later, Lodi told police she had been “branded” that night by other rugby team members and she believed they used pliers and a lighter to do it, according to court filings in the case. Lodi told police she would not have consented if she had been sober, according to the filing.
Police said they reviewed Lodi’s cellphone, with her permission, and found a video on Snapchat showing Lodi holding a chair down while another woman is sitting on it with a washcloth on her face.
Another woman then poured liquid onto the cloth, which a Northfield police officer described in the filing as a “technique I would call waterboarding.”
Police said Friday that as a result of an investigation six students at the private military school in Northfield, ranging in age from 20 to 22, have been issued “hazing tickets.” The tickets are for civil violations with the cases heard in the state’s Judicial Bureau.
The penalty for a hazing ticket is up to $5,000, though if a person doesn’t contest it they can pay a waiver penalty of $1,000, according to Norwich Police Chief John Helfant.
“The Legislature, when they created the hazing law, made it a ticket and not a criminal offense,” he said.
Three of those students receiving civil tickets also were issued criminal citations into Washington County Superior Court.
One of the students, who is 21, is charged with simple assault and reckless endangerment, Helfant said.
That student, according to the police chief, is charged under the state’s Youthful Offender law, which allows those 21 and under to have their cases handled in family court behind closed doors. As a result, he said, he is not releasing that person’s name.
“We treat them just like a juvenile case,” Helfant said of those charged under that law.
Two other students will have their cases heard in the county’s adult criminal court. Bryana Pena, 22, is charged with simple assault, and Lodi, also 22, is charged with reckless endangerment, Helfant said.
Pena and Lodi were cited to appear in court for arraignments on July 13.
Attempts to reach Pena and Lodi for comment Friday afternoon by phone and through Facebook were not successful.
Helfant said Pena and the 21-year-old student are accused of branding Lodi.
The police chief said Lodi and the 21-year-old allegedly took part in the waterboarding of another student.
Helfant said some students were issued only civil hazing tickets — and not charged criminally — because the branding in those cases was voluntary.
“They did it to another student, and that student volunteered to do it,” he said.
The criminal charges involved allegations where a person did not consent or was so impaired they could not voluntarily consent, according to the police chief.
Helfant said all six students were members of the women’s rugby team. But a spokesperson for Norwich University, Daphne Larkin, said that one was a member of the women’s lacrosse team.
A webpage for the roster of the women’s rugby team was replaced with a message stating that the misconduct allegations had generated media attention, with one media outlet linking to the team’s webpage as part of a story.
“When we became aware of the link, we concluded that it was appropriate to protect the student-athletes’ privacy,” the message said. “We have temporarily removed the team roster with their personally identifying information from the website.”
The webpage for the roster of the women’s lacrosse team lists Pena as a member.
Helfant said the investigation did not uncover evidence of anybody with a knife who attacked Lodi that night, as had initially been reported. Also, the police chief said, the probe did not reveal evidence “at this time” that any coaches knew of the hazing.
A student told police that she was aware that branding was happening at the school and that “usually the collar brass for the corps uniforms” was used.
The student said the “NU” would be heated up and used to brand someone, and she knew of a student who had one on her posterior, according to a court filing.
A filing also stated that a police officer in Northfield who had previously worked at Norwich in security “knew of individuals being branded” with the “NU” collar brass of their uniforms.
Larkin, the school spokesperson, wrote in an email Friday that the university has a “zero tolerance” policy when it comes to hazing.
“Student athletes named in the investigation were suspended immediately after the incident occurred from representing the university during athletic competition,” Larkin wrote.
The university has completed its own investigations and will be “taking appropriate disciplinary” action, Larkin said. She wrote that she could not provide further details on the student discipline due to federal law.