93.9 The Eagle – The News and Talk of Columbia, MO
The family of a former Mizzou student in Columbia who’s now unable to walk, talk or see supports anti-hazing legislation that’s being proposed by a southern Missouri state lawmaker.
State Rep. Travis Smith (R-Dora), a Mizzou graduate, has filed legislation that Danny Santulli’s family calls “Danny’s law,” Representative Smith’s two-page House Bill 1443 would prevent someone from being convicted of hazing if they’re the first to call 911 or campus security to report a need for medical assistance. Mizzou Greek Alliance Secretary Steve McCartan, a partner with the Shook, Hardy and Bacon law firm, testified on behalf of Santulli’s family on Thursday in Jefferson City.
“In October 2021 during an event known as ‘Father reveal night’, Danny was forced to drink alcohol to the point that he lost consciousness. And I’m reading now directly from Danny’s father, he was then thrown on a couch, periodically checked on by other fraternity members and only when he stopped breathing and slid off the couch did these fraternity members realize something was terribly wrong and took action. Instead of calling 911, the fraternity members panicked, thinking not of Danny but what would happen to them,” Mr. McCartan testifies.
Representative Smith tells the Missouri House Crime Prevention and Public Safety Committee that the bill will save lives, if it’s approved.
While several lawmakers have some language concerns, there appears to be bipartisan support for the concept of Representative Smith’s legislation. He wants to prevent a situation like Santulli’s alleged 2021 hazing incident in Columbia from ever happening again. Santulli’s family backs Representative Smith’s bill. Smith acknowledges there are language concerns with the bill and is willing to work with colleagues on that.
“We want to pass good bills up here (Jefferson City), and we certainly don’t want to make it hard to prosecute (those who commit hazing). My biggest concern right now is unfortunately, this young man his life was changed forever because people were afraid to make a phone call,” Representative Smith says.
Representative Smith’s two-page bill would prevent someone from being convicted of hazing if they’re the first to call 911 or campus security to report a need for medical assistance. That person would have to stay on-scene, until police or other first responders arrive. State Rep. Barry Hovis (R-Whitewater) tells Smith that the bill needs some rewriting:
“And I’ll use (this) example: you have the president and the vice president of a particular chapter. They start a hazing event, which is not the intent to harm anyone. But let’s just say someone goes down because they don’t drink alcohol a lot and two people are there that started this. One of them is the one that makes the phone call … the other one is doing CPR on him. But the one that made the phone call gets the exemption out the one that’s doing the CPR, trying to save his life, does not,” Representative Hovis says.
The Missouri House Crime Prevention and Public Safety Committee did not vote on Smith’s bill yesterday (Thursday). Santulli’s family says that Danny will need care for life due to a severe, permanent brain injury.
