Friend charged with giving alcohol to 20-year-old Pirates fan who fell from PNC Park stands
A friend of the 20-year-old Pirates fan who fell from the stands onto the warning track at PNC Park last month is charged with buying him alcohol.
Twenty-one-year-old Ethan Kirkwood is charged with two misdemeanor counts of selling or furnishing alcohol to a minor after he told police he bought drinks for Kavan Markwood while the two were at the Pirates-Cubs game with friends on April 30.
Markwood fell after he appeared to celebrate an RBI double from the Pirates' Andrew McCutchen during the bottom of the seventh inning. Video taken from behind Markwood shows his leg clipping the railing directly in front of his seat before he tumbles onto the field.
The game was delayed and some players took a knee as Markwood was carted off the field and taken to the hospital in critical condition.
Court paperwork details what led to Pirates fan's fall
According to court paperwork, Kirkwood admitted to police that he bought drinks for Markwood before he fell.
Police said surveillance video shows Kirkwood buying two 24-ounce cans of Miller Lite at a kiosk shortly before 7 p.m. After that, police said Kirkwood, Markwood and the two females they were with can be seen walking away. In one shot, both Kirkwood and Markwood are holding beer, investigators said.
About an hour after that, police said Kirkwood once again went to a kiosk and ordered two cans of alcohol.
The final clip at 8:49 p.m. shows Kirkwood walking down the stairs and to the bar area. Shortly after that, police said you can see fans at the park witnessing Markwood's fall.
"Two females are seen running down the stairs and looking for Kirkwood. Kirkwood is then seen handing a can to a female who throws it in the trash and jumping over a railing and then jumped on the field to help his friend," the criminal complaint reads.
One of the females, who the affidavit describes as Markwood's girlfriend, told investigators he drank just two beers and had not been drinking before the game.
Pirates say their focus is on Kavan's recovery
In a statement, Brian Warecki, the Pirates' senior vice president of communications and broadcasting, said the team's concerns are with Markwood.
"We feel it is inappropriate to comment on this legal matter. Kavan, his family and his friends have been through a lot. Our focus remains on supporting Kavan on his road to recovery following this tragic accident," the Pirates said in a statement.
Markwood recovering from fall
In the last update from Markwood's family and doctors on May 7, they said the 20-year-old was recovering "ahead of schedule" given the severity of his injuries. He sustained injuries to several parts of his body, including his skull, brain, spine, both sides of his ribs and his lungs.
Falling from 21 feet, a large number of people don't survive, "much less progress to the point where they can get out of the hospital and into rehab so quickly," Allegheny General Hospital Chief Medical Officer Dr. Al Philp said.
During that press conference, Philp said Markwood was expected to be released from the hospital and start rehab.
"Kavan has always been full of surprises and we are thrilled to see him making excellent progress every day. He continues to demonstrate his incredible strength," his sister Taryn Markwood said at the time.
Taryn talked about the special bond she had with her brother, saying, "I'm very grateful that I have him still."
"He's a good person and for people to judge him from an accident is messed up," she added.
