CHICAGO _ A settlement has been reached in a lawsuit filed by a former Wheaton College football player who said he was injured in a hazing incident in 2016, the college announced Tuesday.
The former player, Indiana resident Charles Nagy, agreed to a confidential settlement with the school and six of the seven former teammates named in the civil action.
The college issued a statement, along with the news of the agreement:
"Consistent with its commitment to ensure that all members of the community are treated with dignity and respect, Wheaton College regrets that this incident occurred and is saddened by any harm suffered by Charles Nagy," the statement read.
"The college continues to proactively review and enhance its policies, training, and disciplinary measures to prevent incidents like this from happening in the future. Mr. Nagy commends and supports the College's ongoing efforts," the statement concluded.
Nagy's attorney, Terry Ekl, declined to comment Tuesday, citing the confidentiality agreement.
Nagy was a freshman football player at Wheaton in March 2016 when, he said, a group of fellow players took him by force from his dorm room and initiated the hazing.
Nagy withdrew from the college shortly after the incident, during which he suffered injuries that resulted in shoulder surgeries, he said.
Local authorities later charged five students with aggravated battery and other offenses. Four of them pleaded guilty to misdemeanors. A fifth, Benjamin Pettway, is awaiting trial and is the only remaining party in the civil case.
Four of the five players charged in criminal court were also named in the civil complaint. There were three players named in the lawsuit who were not charged with criminal violations.
After news of the arrests broke in 2017, the college called the hazing incident "entirely unacceptable." But the lawsuit alleged that the college had been aware of hazing incidents for many years yet had not taken any steps to prevent them.
