Officials at Florida A&M University say a 19-month suspension is long enough for the Marching 100, following the hazing related death of the band’s drum major, Robert Champion, in 2011.
FAMU’s interim president, Larry Robinson, said he will lift the band’s suspension and is confident the university’s zero-tolerance policy on hazing will prevent the circumstances surrounding
Champion’s death, according to a New York Times report.Robinson, however, did not say when the band would make its first return performance.
Despite the university offer to settle out of court, the 26-year-old Champion’s family is still suing the university, claiming officials long tolerated a culture of band hazing.
The drum major’s death was ruled a homicide. Fourteen former band members have been charged with felonies; some have entered pleas of no contest, while others have pleaded not guilty, the Times reports.