Bel Air Man Convicted In Towson University Hazing Case

TOWSON, MD — A Bel Air man has been found guilty of hazing in connection with a fraternity pledge event off campus at Towson University last spring that sent a student to the hospital for nearly a week.

Alexander James Cantor, 22, of the 1200 block of Midwood Court in Bel Air, was convicted of hazing and sentenced to probation for six months, until Nov. 23, 2017, court records show.

Cantor was a member of Tau Kappa Epsilon (TKE), a fraternity that a 19-year-old student was pledging when he attended an initiation event in the 300 block of Hillen Road on March 31, 2016, where police said the teen was forced to do intense workouts, recite fraternity knowledge and drink unknown substances.

The teen became extremely ill and was hospitalized with injuries that police later said indicated he had ingested a caustic substance.

When Cantor learned the victim was sick, police said he discouraged the teen from seeking medical help, and while the victim was hospitalized, Cantor allegedly arranged the removal of TKE items from his dorm room.

Cantor was charged nearly one year ago with hazing and reckless endangerment. He was found not guilty of reckless endangerment in court Tuesday.

Patch reached out to Cantor and his attorney for comment on the case, and they did not immediately reply.

Baltimore County Judge Steven D. Wyman said this week that the injuries to the student pledging TKE were "not a crime of intent" on the part of Cantor, Towson University student newspaper The Towerlight reported.

The gastroenterologist from the University of Maryland St. Joseph Medical Center who treated the student testified he was concerned he may have needed to have his stomach removed, and the victim, who arrived at the hospital with renal failure, said the incident also resulted in emotional damage on campus, where he was called the "bleach boy" afterward, according to The Towerlight.

Both fraternity brothers who were charged in the case — Cantor and Evan Palmer Francis, 22 — are no longer enrolled in the university, according to Towson University spokesman Raymond Feldmann. Court records show Francis was sentenced last year to probation before judgement.

Feldmann said that hazing was prohibited at the university.

"Our concern is, first and foremost, with the student who was injured as a result of this hazing incident and his family," Feldmann said. "Hazing is illegal and a violation of our Code of Student Conduct; it will not be tolerated at Towson University."

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According to police, both hazing and reckless endangerment are misdemeanors. Hazing carries a maximum fine of $500 and six months in jail, while reckless endangerment is punishable by a $5,000 fine and up to five years in jail.

The TKE fraternity has been suspended from campus until 2021, officials say.

Fraternity hazing gained national attention recently when 18 students at Penn State were charged in the February death of a 19-year-old pledge.

At Towson, the administration has a hazing education program for Greek life participants and has a policy in place that prohibits hazing. Said Feldmann: "Towson University takes any report of hazing, or confirmed incident of hazing, very seriously."

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Booking photo of Alexander Cantor courtesy of the Baltimore County Police Department.