ORLANDO, Florida -- The family of Robert Champion — the Florida A&M University drum major killed in a hazing ritual in Orlando — settled a lawsuit against the university, accepting $1.1 million and an apology, according to documents obtained Friday by the Orlando Sentinel.
The university will pay $300,000 through the Florida Department of Financial Services, the maximum allowed without a claims bill that would have required the Florida Legislature's approval.
An insurance company for the Rosen Plaza hotel will pay $800,000 to the drum major's estate. The hazing occurred on a bus parked at the hotel where the marching band was staying.
FAMU also will honor Champion by renaming the marching band's anti-hazing program for the drum major and dedicating a commemorative plaque in his memory in the band room on FAMU's campus, the student union, or "The Patch," as the band's practice field is known.
The Champions can choose the plaque's location, according to the agreement.
Champion, 26, died Nov. 19, 2011, after the hazing that followed a performance at the Citrus Bowl that was part of the Florida Classic weekend, an annual football game and band competition with its in-state rival, Bethune-Cookman University.
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