Associated Press Published

NJ Man Pleads No Contest in WVU Frat Hazing

Woodburn Hall, West Virginia University

A Thursday sentencing is set for a New Jersey man who pleaded no contest to hazing at a West Virginia University fraternity.

Michael Sousa entered the plea Tuesday in Monongalia County Magistrate Court.

Prosecutors are recommending a six-month suspended sentence, 48 hours in jail and community service. The defense is asking that Sousa be fined.
 
The 21-year-old from Point Pleasant Beach, New Jersey, was one of three people charged in connection with an incident at the Phi Kappa Psi fraternity on Nov. 15, 2013. Police said a 19-year-old man was physically assaulted and injured while participating in an initiation.
 
Co-defendants Andrew Nemes of Huntington Beach, Calif., and Christopher Lazzell of Morgantown are scheduled to appear in magistrate court on June 23.