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Does This Change Anything? Victim in Bus Hazing Was Gay

Does This Change Anything? Victim in Bus Hazing Was Gay

Robertchampion
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The parents of a Florida A&M University band member killed during a hazing ritual have revealed that their son was gay, although they do not believe that his sexual orientation was the primary reason for the attack on him last year.

Robert Champion Jr. was found unresponsive on a bus in Orlando last November after a Florida Classic football game against rival Bethune-Cookman University. Although no one has been charged in the incident, according to the Associated Press, "An autopsy ruled Champion's death a homicide. It concluded Champion suffered blunt trauma blows to his body and died from shock caused by severe bleeding."

On Tuesday, the parents of Champion, who was 26, announced they planned to sue Fabulous Coach Lines, the company that owns the bus where the beating took place, for negligence after allowing band members to get back on the bus to conduct the hazing after the football game. They also plan to sue Champion's university but are required to wait a few months due to regulations regarding lawsuits against public entities.

The family's attorney, Chris Chestnut, told CBS News that "it may or may not have been" Champion's sexual orientation that led to him being singled out. Witnesses have said that Champion's vocal opposition to hazing rituals and his candidacy for chief drum major may have played roles as well.

"His sexual orientation was not something he was defined by," Champion's mother said. "He was more defined by his music."

Band director Julian White was fired from the university following the incident but was later reinstated and put on administrative leave.

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