The Associated Press | Posted: Tuesday, November 25, 2008 11:00 pm
LOGAN, Utah -- Authorities are investigating the death of Utah State University fraternity pledge Michael Starks as a case of hazing.
Logan Police Chief Russ Roper said an investigation is "very close" to complete and that investigators will have sufficient probable cause for criminal charges.
Starks, 18, was pronounced dead at Logan Regional Hospital Friday morning after friends tried reviving him when he was found unresponsive at the Sigma Nu fraternity home.
"We believe it was part of an initiation process for membership into the fraternity," Roper said.
Police were waiting for the results of a state medical examiner's autopsy to determine an official cause of death, according to a department news release issued Tuesday afternoon.
Funeral services for Starks were held Tuesday morning in Salt Lake City at the Cathedral of the Madeleine.
Police have interviewed nearly a dozen people, including members of Utah State's Greek community and someone who acknowledged providing Starks with alcohol.
Police reports indicate that Starks had been drinking Thursday night before falling asleep at the fraternity home. He was later found not breathing.
Police say Starks's blood alcohol content was higher than 0.35 the day he died, more than four times the legal limit to drive an automobile.
Brad Beacham, Sigma Nu's executive director, was in Logan on Monday to meet with police and school officials.
The USU chapter has declined comment. All chapter activities have been suspended, a move Beacham said is standard procedure.