The parents of a former Missouri frat boy have said he is ‘alive for a reason’ after he suffered a horrific hazing incident which left him blind and unable to speak or walk. 

Danny Santulli was forced to drink so much alcohol during a Phi Gamma Delta fraternity event in October 2021 that he was left with permanent brain damage. 

Three years later, his father, Tom Santulli, said the family is ‘on a mission’ to ensure the students responsible face serious charges. 

‘I do personally want to see specific kids get felonies,’ Santulli told Fox News Digital. ‘That’s going to wake them up. A misdemeanor is not going to wake them up.’

‘I think Danny’s alive… because other kids were not as fortunate when there was a hazing incident,’ he added. ‘He’s alive for a reason.’ 

Before: Danny is shown in 2020 before the hazing incident left him permanently disabled 

Santulli added that he’s made himself watch the harrowing surveillance footage of his then 18-year-old son falling unconscious at the ‘Pledge Dad Reveal Night’. 

‘People say, “Are you sure you want to see it?” Yes, I want to see what happened to my son,’ he explained. 

‘I do want to see the abuse. I want to see exactly what happened. And yes, I was blown away. But then again, I said, ‘I’m glad [I saw it].’ 

Danny was forced to drink an entire 1.75 bottle of Tito’s vodka and beer hours before, and he stopped breathing long enough to cause severe brain damage. 

The footage also shows Danny in a line of shirtless, blindfolded freshman being led down a staircase in the frat house.

His mother, Mary Pat, described Danny’s final interactions with the family in the days before the fateful evening of October 19, 2021. 

‘Prior to the incident, he was very sleep-deprived,’ she said. ‘[The fraternity was] draining his account… He was very drained… 

‘At that point, I talked to him and said, “Danny, you don’t have to go through this. You can quit. You have to do what’s best for you.”

‘He was… quiet about it. And then two days later, this happened… I just couldn’t believe what took place that night.’

Danny is shown on the night in October 2021 with a bottle of Tito’s in his hand

Danny is shown slumped half-off of the couch inside the frat house after passing out 

Danny Santulli is shown above being carried to a car to be driven to the hospital on October 20 after a brutal night of hazing at his University of Missouri fraternity 

She urged parents to keep in touch with their children as they head to college, and research any sororities and fraternities they become involved with. 

‘This is real, [this] is happening [to other students],’ she told Fox News Digital. 

‘It will continue if fraternities and sororities are still going on. People need to be educated and we need to talk to our kids. We need to let them know what’s going on. 

Danny Santulli was left disabled by a brutal fraternity hazing incident in October 2021

‘[Parents] need to do their research and find out if any of these sororities or fraternities have had past violations, what the record is.’

The horrific footage from October 2021 shows the moment Danny’s frat brothers realized he was seriously ill before carrying him to a car to get him to the hospital.

By the time he got there, he had stopped breathing for long enough to cause severe brain damage. Authorities said his blood alcohol content was 0.486, six times the legal limit. 

Danny now lives at home with his parents and requires round the clock care. His family estimates his medical bills are in excess of $2 million.

Ryan P Delanty, who was Santulli’s ‘pledge dad’ on the night of the incident, was sentenced to six months in jail in May after pleading guilty to supplying liquor to a minor and misdemeanor hazing. 

The sentence was part of a plea agreement, and Delanty will also undergo six months of house arrest.  

Santulli now requires round the clock care which his family say has cost them around $2 million

Ryan P. Delanty is facing six months in jail over the October 2021 incident after pleading guilty to hazing

Samuel Gandhi (left) and Alec Wetzler (right) were also been named as defendants now by the family of Danny Santulli, a teenager whose family say was forced to drink until his heart stopped last October during pledge month at Phi Gamma Delta. Both pleaded guilty in 2023

Hazing is a class A misdemeanor in Missouri, unless the act creates a substantial risk to the life of the student or prospective member, in which case it is a class C felony. 

Another fraternity member, Thomas Shultz of Chesterfield, Missouri, pleaded guilty in April 2023 to supplying liquor to a minor. 

He was sentenced to 30 days in jail, two years of probation, and was ordered to perform community service and complete a drug and alcohol education program.

Samuel Gandhi and Alec Wetzler also pleaded guilty in 2023 to supplying liquor to a minor.

The fraternity chapter has since been shut down. Santulli’s relatives filed a civil lawsuit against the fraternity and 23 members, which was settled for an unspecified amount in 2022. 

On Oct. 19, 2021, Daniel “Danny” Santulli was blindfolded and shirtless when he was forced to drink a bottle of vodka taped to his hand at a fraternity pledge event. The incident left the University of Missouri freshman unable to see, walk or speak.

The case of the then-19-year-old, who suffered brain damage from severe alcohol poisoning, is being explored in A&E’s new true-crime docuseries, “Houses of Horror: Secrets of College Greek Life.”

The show details how Greek organizations can have “far-reaching consequences that can turn dangerous, even deadly.” It features interviews with former fraternity and sorority members, loved ones, law enforcement and other experts.

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The Santulli family has come forward to raise awareness about their son and the peer pressure they said he endured leading up to his life-altering injuries.

“Prior to the incident, he was very sleep-deprived,” Santulli’s mother, Mary Pat Santulli, told Fox News Digital. “[The fraternity was] draining his account… He was very drained… At that point, I talked to him and said, ‘Danny, you don’t have to go through this. You can quit. You have to do what’s best for you.’”

“He was… quiet about it,” the matriarch reflected. “And then two days later, this happened… I just couldn’t believe what took place that night.”

Mary Pat Santulli is seen here with her son Danny Santulli before his night of horror. (The Santulli Family)

According to the episode, Santulli broke down to his older sister Meredith. He was struggling with the recruitment of the fraternity Phi Gamma Delta. His grades were slipping.

Previously, he was hospitalized after an older member instructed him to climb inside a trash can filled with broken glass.

At the time of the incident that would rock his family, Santulli was taking part in a ritual called “pledge dad reveal night.” According to the series, Santulli was forced to drink hard liquor, followed by beer.

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A lawsuit contended that Danny Santulli and the rest of his pledge class at Phi Gamma Delta were each forced to drink a bottle of hard liquor given to them by their “pledge fathers.” (The Santulli Family)

Just before 11 p.m., a heavily intoxicated Santulli was seen in security camera footage losing his balance, and eventually falling backwards. Fraternity members then carried him to a nearby sofa. At one point, his head hit a tile floor.

Santulli’s limp body fell off the sofa at 12:30 a.m. and was not put back until 15 minutes later, when he was taken outside. While carrying Santulli to the door, the video footage showed members of the fraternity dropping him. He was then taken to the hospital in a car driven by fraternity members.

Santulli was found in cardiac arrest and not breathing inside the vehicle. Authorities said his blood alcohol content was 0.486%, six times the legal limit.

Students gather to honor Danny Santulli on the one-year anniversary of his hospitalization on Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2022 at Peace Park on the University of Missouri campus. (Imagn)

Santulli’s father, Tom Santulli, told Fox News Digital it was important for him to watch the painful footage for himself.

“People say, ‘Are you sure you want to see it?’ Yes, I want to see what happened to my son,” Tom explained. “I do want to see the abuse. I want to see exactly what happened. And yes, I was blown away. But then again, I said, ‘I’m glad [I saw it].’”

“Now we’re focused – now we’re on a mission, and we’re going to hold people accountable for what happened that evening,” the patriarch added.

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Daniel Santulli seen in undated family photo before the hazing incident. (Photo courtesy of Tom Santulli)

Santulli spent six weeks at the University of Missouri Hospital’s intensive care unit before moving to a rehab hospital in Colorado. As a result of the incident, doctors say he will need care for life. He has been described as a victim of “the worst fraternity hazing injury ever in the United States,” his family’s attorney said.

“I think Danny’s alive… because other kids were not as fortunate when there was a hazing incident,” said Tom. “… He’s alive for a reason.”

“This is real, [this] is happening [to other students],” chimed Mary Pat. “It will continue if fraternities and sororities are still going on. People need to be educated and we need to talk to our kids. We need to let them know what’s going on. [Parents] need to do their research and find out if any of these sororities or fraternities have had past violations, what the record is.”

Daniel Santulli suffered “massive brain damage” after an October 2021 hazing incident. (Photo courtesy of Tom Santulli)

Attorney David Bianchi, who represents the Santulli family and specializes in hazing litigation, said the student’s injury was not an isolated event.

“These are part of a pattern of unsafe and dangerous behavior that represents the traditions of the fraternity,” he said.

Since 2017, Phi Gamma Delta, also known as Fiji, had six documented violations of alcohol distribution policies and two hazing violations in Missouri, according to university records. The Missouri chapter has since been shut down following Santulli’s hospitalization.

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Today, the Minnesota resident has been making “great strides,” but the pain has not lessened for the family.

“Danny needs care 24/7,” Tom explained. “We are the main caregivers, my wife and I. We also have nurses come in. We have caregivers come in. We have different folks who focus on speech, occupational therapy and physical therapy. We also have appointments for Danny.”

“But from the accident in 2021 to now, he has improved,” Tom shared. “I’m not saying it’s significant, but he is making strides.”

Santulli’s story is far from over. Loved ones went on to file a civil lawsuit against the fraternity and 23 members. It was settled for an unspecified amount in 2022.

In May of this year, Ryan P. Delanty of Manchester, Missouri, pleaded guilty to supplying liquor to a minor and misdemeanor hazing, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported. Santulli’s “pledge dad” was sentenced to six months in jail, KRCGTV shared. According to the outlet, he will also spend six months on house arrest.

Another fraternity member, Thomas Shultz of Chesterfield, Missouri, previously pleaded guilty to supplying liquor to a minor. He was sentenced to 30 days in jail, two years of probation, and ordered to perform community service and complete a drug and alcohol education program.

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The University of Missouri in Columbia, Missouri. (Wesley Hitt/Getty Images)

Alec Wetzler pleaded guilty to charges of supplying liquor to a minor or intoxicated person and purchase/attempt to purchase or possession of liquor by a minor, according to KRCG. Court records showed that Wetzler was handed a 180-day jail sentence, as well as two years of unsupervised probation. He was also ordered to pay a $500 fine.

The university has disciplined 13 former fraternity members, the Columbia Daily Tribune reported. A spokesperson did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

“Our thoughts and prayers continue to be with Danny and the Santulli family,” Executive Director of Phi Gamma Delta Rob Caudill previously said.

Danny Santulli today. (The Santulli Family)

“Danny should not have been put in such a situation,” said Caudill. “The International Fraternity prohibits hazing and the provision of alcohol to minors and expects all members to follow the law and our policies.

“We support anyone being held accountable for their conduct and the consequences that may result. The International Fraternity acted immediately to stop all activities of the chapter, which is now closed.”

As the school season gears up, Santulli’s family is determined to warn other parents. Mary Pat even suggested that students considering Greek life should wait at least one semester and speak with other members first to educate themselves and their loved ones.

“It’s very difficult to relive everything and talk about it,” she said. “But I feel… it’s important to make people aware of what is happening in Greek life. Hazing is real. And we just want to make people aware, so this tragedy doesn’t happen to another family.”

JASPER COUNTY, Mo. (KY3) – A dog is now safe after being rescued from a deep sinkhole in southwest Missouri Saturday afternoon.

According to the Webb City Animal Control, a man was walking in an area between Webb City and Carterville and found the dog in the sinkhole. The man the called authorities.

Webb City and Carterville firefighters worked to rescue the male Husky mix dog by descending into the sinkhole. They were able to get it harnessed and safely lifted out.

Animal control says the dog had minor injuries and is being cared for at the Joplin Humane Society.

Officials say the dog was wearing a blue collar with no tag or microchip.

Anyone with information is asked to call 417-623-3642 ext 119.

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