FAMU Band Shut Down While Death Investigated

TALLAHASSEE (CBSMiami/AP) — All practices and performances of FAMU's famed marching band have been suspended in the wake of a member's death last weekend.

The Marching 100 band cannot practice or perform until investigators figure out what happened, according to Florida A&M University President James Ammons.

Ammons announced Tuesday that the school will form an independent task force to look into the death of 26-year-old Robert Champion. He was found unresponsive on a bus parked in front of a hotel Saturday night after a football game. He was vomiting and had complained he couldn't breathe before he collapsed.

The task force will exam whether there have been ongoing inappropriate band customs or traditions. The school has had problems with hazing in the past. Ammons said the school will cooperate with Orange County deputies who are investigating the death.

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