FAMU Band Shut Down After Student’s Sudden Death

The president of Florida A&M University has announced Tuesday he will be suspending the school’s famous Marching 100 band until investigators establish what led to a member’s death last weekend.

Speaking at a press conference at the university earlier today, James Ammons, said the school has formed an independent task force to examine the death of Robert Champion. The panel would try to “determine if there are patterns of inappropriate behavior within the culture of the band,” Ammons said, amid rumors of hazing as a possible factor in Champion’s death.

The 26-year-old, an Atlanta native, was found unconscious on Saturday night by Orlando paramedics aboard a parked charter bus in front of the Rosen Plaza. He was transported to a nearby hospital and later pronounced dead.