Police recommend charges in WSU frat alcohol poisoning death
Published
PULLMAN, Wash. - Pullman police are recommending misdemeanor charges for seven fraternity members involved in the heavy drinking that led to a 19-year-old Washington State University student’s death by alcohol poisoning.
Police in late January recommended hazing charges for two WSU students, including a frat member who acted as a "big brother" to Samuel Martinez, who died in 2019, The Spokesman-Review reported.
Pullman Police Department officer Jake Opgenorth says police believe the remaining five fraternity members should be charged with furnishing alcohol to a minor. Although Martinez became unconscious after drinking and died about four hours before fraternity members called 911, Opgenorth said investigators didn’t feel there was enough evidence for a prosecutor to prove manslaughter beyond a reasonable doubt.