ORLANDO, Florida - Florida A&M University drum major Robert Champion was gay, which may have been one reason why he was beaten so severely during a hazing attack in Orlando last semester, the Champion family’s attorney said Tuesday.
Attorney Christopher Chestnut, speaking at a news conference with Champion’s parents in Orlando, said the parents came forward to discuss their son’s sexuality because rumors had been swirling that the 26-year-old student was hazed specifically because of his "alternative lifestyle."
Though Champion’s sexual orientation may have been a factor, Chestnut said, his own investigation indicates that it was probably one of several that caused students to beat him so violently that he died.
He insisted, however, that the overriding motivation that likely led to such a brutal attack was Champion’s outspoken resistance to hazing within FAMU’s famed marching band.
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FAMU Drum Major Targeted Because He Opposed Hazing, Lawyer Claims
ORLANDO, Florida - The parents of Florida A&M University drum major Robert Champion, who police believe died after a violent hazing, said today that their son may have been hazed more severely than other students because of his opposition to the practice.
"Robert Champion was the poster child of anti-hazing. He threatened the very institution of hazing in this band," said attorney Christopher Chestnut, a lawyer for Champion's family.
During their investigation into what happened to their son, Champion's family discovered that he was gay, but also concluded that was not a reason for his alleged hazing.
"This is not a hate crime," Chestnut said during a news conference today. "This is a hazing crime. That is what we are here to say today."
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Witnesses: FAMU drum major was targeted due to sexuality
ATLANTA -- Was sexual orientation a factor in the hazing death of a Florida A&M University drum major? It depends on who you ask. Nearly two months after his death, the parents of FAMU drum major Robert Champion said Tuesday morning that although their son was gay, that's not why he was targeted.
The Decatur native died November 19 after collapsing on a bus following a band performance. Officials have ruled his death a homicide caused by hazing.
During Tuesday's news conference, attorney Christopher Chestnut said after speaking with more than 15 witnesses, many reported that Champion was subjected to more severe hazing than other students.
Some witnesses said they believed Champion was hazed harder because he was gay.
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Questions Swirl Over What Led to Florida Drum Major’s Death
ATLANTA — Almost two months after the beating death of a Florida A&M University drum major, new questions have arisen over why he might have been singled out for violence.
On Tuesday, the parents of the student, Robert Champion, revealed that their son had been gay. But they said they believed that did not play a big role in the beating the authorities say he sustained at the hands of bandmates on a bus after a football game on Nov. 19.
“Robert’s being gay may have been a reason for his hazing, but it wasn’t the main reason,” said Christopher M. Chestnut, the family’s lawyer, who said he had conducted a private investigation. “This was a hazing crime, not a hate crime.”
That Mr. Champion was gay was “a private thing, not something he advertised publicly,” his mother, Pam Champion, said in an interview.
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