Organizer of fatal FAMU hazing sentenced to 77 months in prison

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ORLANDO, Florida -- Orange Circuit Judge Renee Roche, saying that "forgiveness doesn't have a role in the legal system," sentenced former FAMU band member Dante Martin to more than six years in prison Friday for organizing the fatal hazing of drum major Robert Champion.

It was the harshest sentence yet in the beating death of the drum major three years ago in Orlando.

Martin was one of 15 people charged in Champion's death but the only ex-band member to get prison time in the case.

Before imposing her sentence, the judge described Martin as a "remarkable young man" with "limitless potential" and a strong support system, basing her view on two hours of testimony from family and friends, including a former band member who pleaded with her to give the 27-year-old a second chance.

"On the other hand, the circumstances of this death were so profoundly disturbing," Roche said.

Martin's lawyers had asked the judge to spare him a prison sentence, suggesting he could be a persuasive voice against hazing if given the chance.



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