FORT WORTH, Texas — Eric Kay will not testify in his defense, his attorneys indicated in U.S. District Court on Wednesday.
Kay, the former Angels communication director, has been charged with giving Tyler Skaggs the narcotics that led to his death in a suburban Dallas hotel room in 2019.
Kay, 47, faces two felony counts: providing Skaggs counterfeit oxycodone pills laced with fentanyl that resulted in his choking on his vomit and distributing fentanyl and oxycodone since "beginning in or before 2017." Kay faces a minimum of 20 years in federal prison if convicted of supplying Skaggs the counterfeit pills.
Kay's defense began its case Wednesday by calling five witnesses. The group included Garet Ramos, Skaggs' stepbrother, and former Angels players Andrelton Simmons and Trevor Cahill.
Before court recessed for lunch, the defense told Judge Terry R. Means that it planned to call one more witness before resting its case: former Angels pitcher Blake Parker, who had left the courthouse without testifying, thinking he was free to leave.
The defense first called Ramos to the stand and focused on his recollection of two events: Skaggs' admission to his family of a Percocet dependence in 2013 and the chain of custody of Skaggs' phone the day he died.
Defense attorney Michael Molfetta asked Ramos if he knew Skaggs was "addicted" to Percocet, another narcotic. Molfetta then presented Ramos with a document containing his grand jury testimony to refresh his memory. Ramos later explained during cross-examination that he suffers from progressive multiple sclerosis, which he said affects his cognitive skills.
Molfetta then asked Ramos if he helped Skaggs "wean off" Percocet by giving him "OxyContin" pills. Ramos said he didn't know what the pills were because Skaggs had given them to him. Ramos said he used "a very small amount" of pills Skaggs gave him for a "couple days."
Molfetta repeatedly asked if Ramos remembered if the pills were "blue circular pills." Ramos answered he "can't definitively say I remember that."
Molfetta then pivoted to asking Ramos if he deleted messages from Skaggs' phone when the family went to the Southlake Police Department's headquarters to retrieve his possessions. Ramos said Skaggs' mother — his stepmother — asked him to change the phone's passcode. He said he complied and "gave it right back" without deleting anything.
The defense has said Chris Leanos, an admitted drug dealer and Skaggs' friend, asked Ramos to delete a text message. Leanos testified Skaggs texted him a week or two before he died asking if he knew anyone who could provide him with oxycodone. Leanos said he told Skaggs "not to mess with them" because oxycodone pills could contain fentanyl.
The defense called Simmons and Cahill to rehash the possibility that Skaggs went out after the Angels checked into the Hilton Dallas/Southlake Town Square on the night of June 30. Skaggs was found dead in his hotel room the next afternoon. His phone was found not to have any outgoing data after he sent a text to his wife at 12:02 a.m. CDT.
Simmons and Cahill testified they saw and spoke with Skaggs at the hotel. Both players said Skaggs didn't appear drunk, though Cahill said "he probably couldn't drive." Cahill explained players drank Coors Light beer on the team flight. "Nothing crazy," he said.
Simmons said Skaggs either told him or he overheard Skaggs telling someone that he was considering going out that night. Simmons said he got the impression that Skaggs didn't want to go out anymore.
Cahill said Skaggs asked him if he should go out that night. Cahill said he suggested he should not, that it was better to get some rest. He said he didn't see Skaggs again. Asked if he knew Skaggs used drugs, Cahill said he didn't.
