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FORT WORTH, Texas — A federal jury found former Los Angeles Angels communications director Eric Kay guilty on two felony counts Thursday, agreeing with the government that he distributed the deadly drug fentanyl and caused the death of Angels pitcher Tyler Skaggs.
Kay, who won’t be sentenced until June 28, faces a minimum of 20 years in prison.
The jury took less than two hours to deliberate after the eight-day trial, which saw eight major league players take the witness stand, five of whom admitted to their own drug use.
Skaggs, 27, died July 1, 2019, while on a team trip to Texas after ingesting oxycodone, fentanyl and alcohol. Kay had admitted to providing oxycodone to Skaggs and the other players, but the defense said the two men were simply fellow addicts with an agreement that Skaggs would pay for their drugs and Kay would handle transactions. Kay did not testify in the trial.
Kay and his family sat in stunned silence after the verdict was read, while a few feet away Skaggs’ widow, Carli, and his mother, Debbie Hetman, wept and embraced each other.
“We’re obviously disappointed with the verdict,” defense attorney Reagan Wynn said. “There are no winners in this. It’s just a tragedy all around.”
Hetman declined to comment as she left the courtroom, but her attorneys issued a statement on behalf of the family: “We are very grateful to the government and the jury for seeing this important case through to the right verdict. Tyler was the light of our family. He is gone, and nothing can ever bring him back. We are relieved that justice was served, although today is a painful reminder of the worst day in the life of our family.”
In her closing argument, assistant U.S. attorney Lindsey Beran told the jury, “We told you at the beginning of this case that this case was about one person, that on June 30, 2019, there was one person texting with Tyler Skaggs about pills: Eric Kay. On June 30, there was one person Tyler invited to his hotel room: Eric Kay. And on…
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Source : espn
