Son of Flyers' interim GM suspended from college sports after seen pushing wheelchair down stairs
ERIE, Pa. -- The son of Philadelphia Flyers interim general manager Danny Briere has been suspended from his college hockey team pending an investigation launched after a video posted on social media showed him pushing an unoccupied wheelchair down a staircase.
Mercyhurst University said Carson Briere and two other athletes were placed on an interim suspension from their athletic teams, per school policy, pending the outcome of the investigation.
The incident happened Saturday night at a bar near the campus of Mercyhurst University in Erie, Pennsylvania.
Surveillance video from the bar, which has been widely shared on social media, shows Briere's son, Carson, tossing a woman's wheelchair down a flight of stairs. Two others were seen standing with Briere when the incident happened.
"I just can't stomach the thought of this kid getting away with it," said Twitter user Julia Zukowski, who shared the video.
In a statement released to ABC Philadelphia affiliate WPVI, Danny Briere, who was just promoted by the Flyers last week, called his son's action inexcusable.
"I was shocked to see Carson's actions in the video that was shared on social media yesterday. They are inexcusable and run completely counter to our family's values of treating people with respect. Carson is very sorry and accepts full responsibility for his behavior," the interim general manager said.
Carson also released a statement saying, "I am deeply sorry for my behavior on Saturday. There is no excuse for my actions, and I will do whatever I can to make up for this serious lack of judgment."
A spokesperson for Mercyhurst, a school of about 3,000 students in Erie, Pennsylvania, said a code of student conduct process was underway.
"The actions displayed in the video make our hearts heavy and fall short of our Mercy belief in the inherent dignity of each person," the spokesperson said in a statement, adding the school's "tradition also reminds us that students and all people who make poor choices deserve opportunities to learn, change behaviors and atone for harmful actions."
The incident is now under investigation by the Erie City Police Department.
Carson Briere previously was dismissed from Arizona State's hockey club in 2019 for what the school called a violation of team rules. He is in his third season at Mercyhurst, which also competes in Division I.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
