Another man convicted of reckless homicide in BGSU hazing death

BOWLING GREEN, Ohio (WTVG) - Another person has pleaded guilty in the fraternity hazing death of a Bowling Green State University student.

Daylen Dunson, of Cleveland, pleaded guilty to reckless homicide, eight counts of misdemeanor hazing, obstructing justice, obstructing official business, tampering with evidence, and seven counts regarding providing alcohol to those who are underage on Thursday for his role in the death of Stone Foltz.

The reckless homicide charge was an amendment from involuntary manslaughter as part of a plea agreement with prosecutors. This was the only amendment made to the indictment as part of the plea deal, according to the Wood County prosecutor’s office. The obstructing justice charge had previously been amended from a third degree felony to a fifth degree felony, unrelated to the plea agreement.

Dunson was President of the BGSU Pi Kappa Alpha chapter at the time of Foltz’s death. Prosecutors said Dunson attended the hazing event in his role as president, lending the approval of his position to what was happening.

“When the police interviewed Dunson, he provided false information about his whereabouts and whether a fraternity event had happened that night,” the prosecutor’s office said in a statement. “He also told others to lie about the existence of the event. He deleted social media pages and told others to do the same in an attempt to get rid of evidence before police could find it.”

Wood County Prosecuting Attorney Paul Dobson said prosecutors have always considered Dunson to be one of the key players in allowing the hazing event to happen, calling him complicit in Foltz’s death. He said the plea demonstrates why the university spends so much time educating officers of Greek organizations on the dangers and wrongfulness of hazing.

“They are the ones in the best position to stop it and will be held accountable when they don’t,” Dobson said.

According to prosecutors, the Foltz family released a statement expressing their gratitude to the Wood County Prosecutor’s Office.

“We are relying on the judicial system to hold these men accountable for their actions,” the Foltz family said in a statement. “Having six of the eight men charged plead guilty is a start. Hazing is deadly and we lost our 20-year-old son to these senseless acts.”

See a spelling or grammar error in our story? Please include the title when you click here to report it.

Copyright 2022 WTVG. All rights reserved.