Judge H. Shaina Colover listens to closing arguments in the Tyler Skaggs trial on Monday. Paul Bersebach / The Orange County Register via AP, Pool
Lawyers representing the Los Angeles Angels and the family of Tyler Skaggs have spent much of Thursday in settlement discussions, a person briefed on the matter told The Athletic.
No settlement has been agreed to in the wrongful death trial, and it’s unclear whether there will be a deal before the jury resumes deliberations on Friday at 9 a.m. PST.
Settlement discussions have been largely dormant throughout the three-month trial proceedings. However, the Angels re-engaged on Thursday and are negotiating at a higher dollar award than in the past.
Skaggs died from ingesting a fentanyl-laced pill on July 1, 2019. Eric Kay, the Angels’ ex-communications director who provided the pill, is serving 22 years in federal prison.
The family filed the suit in June of 2021, alleging the team knew or should have known that Kay was providing pills to Skaggs and other players.
At the end of their second day of deliberations on Wednesday, jurors asked the court if it’s up to them to award punitive damages, perhaps indicating which way they were leaning. Jurors also asked a question related to future earnings damages.
