‘At some point, water became involved’: Frat closed after members put student in critical condition with a haze inspired by the electric chair

The Rutgers University chapter of Alpha Sigma Phi has been permanently shut down after a horrifying hazing ritual involving electricity and water landed a 19-year-old student in critical condition. This isn’t your typical fraternity high jinks; this was a reckless, life-threatening situation that came to light after authorities were called to a disconnected 911 call and found the student unresponsive at the off-campus house.

This whole disaster unfolded in the basement of the New Brunswick house, and the details that have come out since are alarming. To be fair, the national fraternity organization for Alpha Sigma Phi, Inc., hasn’t tried to sweep this under the rug. Their spokesperson, Gordy Heminger, was quick to confirm that hazing was indeed the cause, stating clearly that, “Based on our investigation, hazing did occur and as a result, the fraternity made the decision to close the chapter.”

Heminger didn’t stop there, either, according to Fox. He went on to shut down any idea that this was just a group of students hanging out when an accident occurred. He confirmed the incident involved “underground and unreported new members,” which is basically the group of pledges they were hazing. The most chilling detail, though, is the quote that explains exactly how bad this truly was. Heminger made it clear, saying, “At some point, water became involved.”

Hazing has never been so dangerous

Water became involved. That single phrase tells you everything you need to know about the reckless, dangerous stunt these members were pulling, especially when paired with electricity. It’s hard not to imagine some kind of twisted, DIY electric chair haze. This is bullying that the school should have stopped.

Heminger went on to emphasize the reality of the situation, adding, “This was not students just listening to music in the dark, as was claimed by an anonymous parent. This was hazing. We are still trying to determine who and how many people were involved, but we believe it will be double digits when all the facts come out.”

You can expect a double-digit number of students to face consequences for this, which is a huge number of people. On the other hand, a closer look at the fraternity’s off-campus house reveals that this was a tragedy waiting to happen. The property itself had a history of code violations, and officials have since declared the entire building an unsafe structure. A July 2025 inspection, just a few months before this incident, had already found a “laundry list of known red flags,” including multiple electrical hazards.

Fortunately, the injured student is no longer in critical condition, which is a huge relief to hear. However, the fight for accountability is far from over. Heminger has made it clear that the national Alpha Sigma Phi chapter will expel any students found to be involved, and he’s publicly calling on Rutgers to “do the same.”

He’s also pushing authorities to throw the book at the responsible parties. He noted that “New Jersey has very strong anti-hazing laws and I hope the prosecutor seeks the maximum penalties allowed for those involved.” New Jersey, and the country, has been cracking down hard on this kind of behavior since the tragic death of Timothy Piazza at Penn State back in 2021.