The Ithaca Journal reported last evening that the three former pledges of the New York Alpha chapter of Sigma Alpha Epsilon were acquitted of all charges in the death of George Desdunes. The three young men, none of whom are currently enrolled at Cornell, were cleared of the charges against them – first-degree hazing and first-degree unlawfully dealing with a child.
The events that occurred on the tragic night of February 25, 2011, events that have been highly publicized throughout the country over the past year (including the New York Times article “When a Hazing Goes Very Wrong), have now been found in court not to be an incident of hazing.
Hon. Judith A. Rossiter issued the decision Tuesday afternoon, over four weeks after the trial ended in Tompkins County Court. Rossiter, a 1986 graduate of the Cornell School of Law, has served as a judge in the city of Ithaca since 1995.
An excerpt from the Ithaca Journal article, including a quote from defense attorney Raymond Schlather, representing Max Haskin ’14:
Haskin’s attorney Raymond Schlather said that the decision has been a vindication for all three young men. “They did not haze George Desdunes or cause his death,” he said, adding that despite the verdict there are no winners in the case. “The family of George Desdunes has lost a son, and these young pledges were unnecessarily scapegoated, and their lives have been irreparably damaged,” Schlather said of the 16-month ordeal.
