- Joined
- May 8, 2002
- Posts
- 1,170,543
- Reaction score
- 59
The wife and mother of former Los Angeles Angels pitcher Tyler Skaggs took the stand Monday in their wrongful death suit against the team, according to multiple sources.
Skaggs died in his hotel room while on a road trip with the team in 2019. He was 27. Toxicology reports later revealed Skaggs died due to combination of "alcohol, fentanyl and oxycodone intoxication with terminal aspiration of gastric contents."
It was later revealed that Skaggs was receiving pills from Eric Kay, the team’s ex-communications director. Kay was found guilty of distributing pills laced with fentanyl to Skaggs. Kay was sentenced to 22 years in federal prison for his actions.
In 2021, Skaggs wife, mother and stepfather filed a wrongful death civil suit against the team, contending it should have known Kay was distributing pills to Skaggs.
Debbie Hetman, Skaggs' mother, testified Monday that she knew about Skaggs' drug addiction in 2013. She said she was unaware whether Skaggs informed the Angels he struggled with Percocet after it acquired him in 2014 and the team never asked Hetman about Skaggs. If the Angels had asked, Hetman said she would have informed the team of Skaggs' addiction.
Hetman learned of Skaggs' addiction in 2013 and proactively sent him to a doctor who specialized in psychopharmacology and a psychiatrist. Hetman informed both of Skaggs' agents and Dr. Neal ElAttrache, who performed Tommy John surgery on Skaggs in 2014.
After it was determined Skaggs was dealing with addiction, he initially submitted to regular drug tests, which he sent to Hetman to show he was not using.
Hetman was not cross-examined by team attorneys Monday.
Angels lawyers did cross-examine Skagg's wife, Carli Skaggs, and reportedly focused on whether she was aware of her husband's drug use. Carli said the pair had smoked marijuana together and that Skaggs took an ecstasy pill once on their honeymoon.
While Hetman mentioned she was concerned about Skaggs taking pain pills following his Tommy John surgery, Carli did not investigate that claim further, believing Skaggs had kicked the addiction by the time they started dating in 2014, per The Athletic.
Carli said she would have insisted on Skaggs getting help had he expressed he was battling addiction, per The Athletic.
The trial, which has now lasted weeks, saw Angels star Mike Trout take the stand in October.
Former members of the Angels have testified in similar cases. When Kay was on trail in 2022, former MLB pitcher Matt Harvey and first baseman C.J. Cron also testified regarding Kay's involvement distributing pills to Angels players.
Continue reading...
Skaggs died in his hotel room while on a road trip with the team in 2019. He was 27. Toxicology reports later revealed Skaggs died due to combination of "alcohol, fentanyl and oxycodone intoxication with terminal aspiration of gastric contents."
It was later revealed that Skaggs was receiving pills from Eric Kay, the team’s ex-communications director. Kay was found guilty of distributing pills laced with fentanyl to Skaggs. Kay was sentenced to 22 years in federal prison for his actions.
In 2021, Skaggs wife, mother and stepfather filed a wrongful death civil suit against the team, contending it should have known Kay was distributing pills to Skaggs.
Debbie Hetman, Skaggs' mother, testified Monday that she knew about Skaggs' drug addiction in 2013. She said she was unaware whether Skaggs informed the Angels he struggled with Percocet after it acquired him in 2014 and the team never asked Hetman about Skaggs. If the Angels had asked, Hetman said she would have informed the team of Skaggs' addiction.
Hetman learned of Skaggs' addiction in 2013 and proactively sent him to a doctor who specialized in psychopharmacology and a psychiatrist. Hetman informed both of Skaggs' agents and Dr. Neal ElAttrache, who performed Tommy John surgery on Skaggs in 2014.
After it was determined Skaggs was dealing with addiction, he initially submitted to regular drug tests, which he sent to Hetman to show he was not using.
Hetman was not cross-examined by team attorneys Monday.
Angels lawyers did cross-examine Skagg's wife, Carli Skaggs, and reportedly focused on whether she was aware of her husband's drug use. Carli said the pair had smoked marijuana together and that Skaggs took an ecstasy pill once on their honeymoon.
While Hetman mentioned she was concerned about Skaggs taking pain pills following his Tommy John surgery, Carli did not investigate that claim further, believing Skaggs had kicked the addiction by the time they started dating in 2014, per The Athletic.
Carli said she would have insisted on Skaggs getting help had he expressed he was battling addiction, per The Athletic.
The trial, which has now lasted weeks, saw Angels star Mike Trout take the stand in October.
Former members of the Angels have testified in similar cases. When Kay was on trail in 2022, former MLB pitcher Matt Harvey and first baseman C.J. Cron also testified regarding Kay's involvement distributing pills to Angels players.
Continue reading...
