A former leader of a Northern Arizona University fraternity has pleaded guilty to hazing a pledge who died

BySARAH RAZA Associated Press

A former leader of a Northern Arizona University fraternity pleaded guilty Monday to hazing and causing a pledge’s death by making him drink excessively at an off-campus rush event.

Carter Eslick, 20, entered the plea to a felony hazing charge involving the death of Colin Daniel Martinez, 18, in Coconino County Superior Court in Flagstaff.

Under an agreement with prosecutors, Eslick would serve no more than four years of probation. A judge will determine the length and could also impose up to a year in jail at a Sept. 30 sentencing hearing.

Martinez, who was pledging to the now-defunct Delta Tau Delta fraternity chapter at NAU, was found unresponsive Jan. 31. An autopsy found his blood-alcohol level was 0.425%, which is considered life-threatening.

Coconino County Attorney Ammon Barker said the plea doesn't diminish the “profound harm caused or the sorrow of Colin's death.”

The Associated Press left an email and voicemail for Eslick's attorney, Burges McCowan, requesting comment on Monday. The AP also left a phone message with the attorney for Martinez's family.

Eslick was serving as the fraternity's pledge master at the time, responsible for welcoming new members. He's no longer a student at NAU. Martinez was among four men pledging to Delta Tau Delta who shared two bottles of vodka to ensure they vomited, according to court documents. Witnesses reported adjusting Martinez's sleeping position and checking his pulse and breathing to look for signs of alcohol poisoning throughout the night, the documents said.

The university suspended the Delta Tau Delta fraternity after Martinez's death, and the national organization closed the NAU chapter.