Carter Eslick

Introduction

Carter Eslick is a 20-year-old from Scottsdale, Arizona, who served as pledge master — the officer responsible for welcoming and instructing new members — of the Delta Tau Delta fraternity chapter at Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff. On 30 September 2026 he was sentenced to 60 days in jail and three years of supervised probation for his role in a hazing ritual that killed 18-year-old pledge Colin Daniel Martinez, who died of alcohol poisoning with a blood-alcohol content of 0.425 percent. Eslick pleaded guilty to a class 4 felony hazing charge and is the only person convicted in the case; his chapter has since been closed.

Background Information

Eslick was an executive-board member of NAU’s Delta Tau Delta chapter, holding the pledge-master role the chapter also called new-member educator. Prosecutors said that in that capacity he supplied the alcohol and led the ritual drinking game that killed Martinez during an off-campus rush event about a mile from the Flagstaff campus in the overnight hours of 30–31 January 2026. He was one of three chapter officers taken into custody after the death, alongside vice president Ryan Creech and treasurer Riley Cass, both also 20.

The Controversy or Incident That Led to Their Cancellation

Adjudicated outcome. Eslick pleaded guilty to one count of hazing, a class 4 felony, and was sentenced by a judge of the Coconino County Superior Court; his guilt is established by his own plea, not by unadjudicated allegations. The hazing resulted in a death, and no one else was charged.

Court records show Martinez and three other pledges were made to stand outside in silence for roughly 30 minutes before being seated at a drinking game in which the four shared a handle of vodka. Court documents cited at sentencing say the four pledges shared two bottles of vodka “to ensure they vomited,” and that witnesses adjusted Martinez’s sleeping position and checked his pulse and breathing through the night while looking for signs of alcohol poisoning rather than seeking help. He was found unresponsive on an air mattress around 8:44 the next morning; Flagstaff police recovered bottles of vodka and Twisted Teas at the house. An autopsy found alcohol poisoning with a blood-alcohol content of 0.425 percent, more than five times Arizona’s legal driving limit.

Eslick initially pleaded not guilty, then admitted at an August change-of-plea hearing that he caused Martinez to be exposed to a substantial risk of death by providing him a significant amount of alcohol during the game. At the 30 September sentencing, he told the court, “I know nothing that I say here can replace or give any type of closure to the Martinez family,” and said he takes “full responsibility for the hand I played in that ritual.” Judge Stacy Krueger imposed 60 days in jail followed by three years of supervised probation, saying Eslick knew the ritual was dangerous and that she was troubled no one spoke out against it. Felony charges against co-arrested officers Creech and Cass were forgone after further investigation.

Public Reaction and Consequences

Martinez’s parents appeared at the hearing remotely; his father said the family “never wanted our son’s life to become a collection of death reports, evidence, charges in court proceedings,” and pressed for accountability and reform in Greek life. Coconino County Attorney Ammon Barker said no sentence could undo the harm and expressed hope that the case “helps people understand the serious dangers of hazing.” The university had suspended the chapter immediately after the death, and Delta Tau Delta’s national organization later closed the NAU chapter permanently.

Current Status

Eslick is serving his 60-day jail term, to be followed by probation conditions that include creating and delivering 305 anti-hazing presentations, abstaining from alcohol and drugs, and keeping the court updated on his progress; he faces additional jail time if he fails the conditions. He remains the only person convicted in Martinez’s death. The NAU chapter of Delta Tau Delta no longer exists, and no public reporting documents his enrollment status at the university.

Impact on Their Career/Life

The conviction leaves Eslick with a class 4 felony record and two months of incarceration, with three years of court supervision and a public-facing obligation — hundreds of anti-hazing presentations — attached to his freedom for the remainder of it. The fraternity that gave him his officer title has been closed at NAU since shortly after the death.

Sources

• New York Post, “Arizona university ex-fraternity leader gets jail time after pledge died of alcohol poisoning,” 1 October 2026, source
• FOX 10 Phoenix, “NAU fraternity hazing death: Carter Eslick sentenced to jail in Colin Martinez fatal poisoning,” 1 October 2026, source
• ABC15 Arizona, “Man pleads guilty to charges in NAU fraternity hazing death,” 1 October 2026, source