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Michael Rothstein
SANTA ANA, Calif. — Los Angeles Angels president John Carpino closed the final day of testimony Friday in the Tyler Skaggs wrongful-death civil trial by asserting that the late pitcher was not a victim but a “drug addict and a drug dealer.”
Carpino and senior vice president of finance/administration Molly Jolly reiterated that they knew nothing of Skaggs’ experience with drugs or those of Eric Kay, the communications employee who gave Skaggs the fentanyl-laced pill that killed him in 2019. Skaggs’ family members are seeking $118 million, plus damages, saying the Angels were negligent in failing to monitor and discipline Kay while keeping him employed.
“Throughout this case of the last six years, the Angels have taken the position that Tyler Skaggs is the bad guy and that your guy is not guilty,” lead plaintiffs attorney Rusty Hardin asked Carpino as part of a rapid-fire two minutes of cross-examination.
“That’s not the position,” Carpino answered. “Tyler Skaggs was a drug addict and a drug dealer, and Eric Kay was distributing drugs and a drug addict as well.”
Multiple players admitted during the trial to receiving pills from Skaggs and Kay, but no evidence had been presented that Skaggs sold illicit drugs.
Kay was convicted in federal court in 2022 of giving Skaggs the drugs that killed him in a Texas hotel room. Carpino testified that he didn’t believe Kay “had proper representation” at his criminal trial and said the franchise has paid at least some of Kay’s legal fees to challenge his imprisonment.
Carpino’s entire testimony came in the final 12 minutes of the trial before closing arguments Monday. Jurors could begin deliberations as early as that afternoon.
For weeks, Angels attorneys have complained that they wouldn’t have time to present their full case in the trial, which started in mid-October. Lead defense attorney Todd Theodora said he cut multiple witnesses from his plan to fit the trial schedule, set months earlier. The judge determined Friday would be the last day of testimony.
Carpino’s assertion that Skaggs was a “drug addict” followed testimony Wednesday from the defense’s addiction expert, Dr. Elie Aoun, a psychiatrist and Columbia University professor. Aoun suggested that Skaggs had “an active addiction that persisted up until the time of his death.”
Aoun testified that when an addict admits to taking drugs publicly, it is typically “just the tip of the iceberg” of the person’s usage. He said it was not clear how often Skaggs took pills.
Defense attorney Stephen Ladsous objected whenever plaintiffs attorney Daniel Dutko attempted to ask Aoun about Kay’s drug addiction.
Jolly testified Friday that Tim Mead, the Angels’ former head of communications and Kay’s boss, never told her about Kay’s experience with drugs or mental health. Had she known, Jolly said, she would have reported it to Major League Baseball and helped Kay.
She said she would have taken the same approach with Skaggs had she known.
“I always want more information and not less information because we want to serve the company and employees, as well,” Jolly said. “So yes, I would have wanted to know.”
The Angels did not report Kay until weeks after Skaggs’ death on July 1, when Kay told another communications employee that he was in Skaggs’ hotel room the night of his death.
Angels officials testified they were unaware of Skaggs’ or Kay’s drug usage or Kay’s distribution of drugs to Angels players. They’ve argued it was Skaggs’ reckless decisions that led to his death, and that it was not their fault and that Kay was operating outside the scope of his duties.
The plaintiffs have claimed the Angels knew about Kay’s drug addiction and continued to employ him. This, they argued, placed Skaggs in harm’s way.
After Carpino’s testimony concluded and jurors left the courtroom, plaintiffs attorneys asked if the defense rested. Theodora paused and said he had more potential witnesses. He then asked the judge if they were done.
She indicated no more witnesses would be called. Theodora objected and then relented, resting the defense’s case.