Carson Briere gets punished for throwing wheelchair downstairs

Publish date: 2024-08-21

The son of Flyers general manager Daniel Briere has received probation from an incident in which he shoved a woman’s wheelchair down the stairs at a bar in Pennsylvania earlier this year.

Carson S. Briere and Patrick Carrozzi had their applications for Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition — a first-time, non-violent offenders program — approved by the Erie County District Attorney’s Office and Judge John J. Mead earlier this week, according to the Erie Times-News.

Briere played hockey at Mercyhurst University while Carrozzi was on the school’s lacrosse team.

Carson S. Briere and Patrick Carrozzi received 15 months probation for throwing a woman’s wheelchair down the stairs at a Pennsylvania bar in March.
Carson Briere’s headshot at Mercyhurst University. Mercyhurst University

They will each receive 15 months of probation and their charges of second-degree misdemeanor criminal mischief will be dismissed and expunged upon successfully completing the program.

The incident occurred at Sullivan’s Irish Pub in March, and video of the two student-athletes shoving the wheelchair down the stairs went viral, spreading across social media and national news outlets.

The wheelchair belonged to Sydney Benes, who lost her legs in 2021 after she was in a car accident.

Sydney Benes and Nathaniel Sanders, the security manager at Sullivan’s Pub, were pictured before the incident. GoFundMe

The wheelchair was at the top of the stairs because Benes had needed to be carried downstairs to use the restroom at the establishment.

“All that was going through my head was ‘man I hope this was an accident, I hope that this wasn’t on purpose,’” Benes said in an interview with YourErie.com in March.

“The head security guard had went and saw the one kid and the hockey player and made him come apologize to me, which wasn’t very sincere,” she said at the time.

Carson Briere plans to resume his hockey career in Europe next year. Mercyhurst University

Briere and Carrozzi both apologized to Benes in court on Tuesday prior to appearing before the judge.

Briere’s attorney told the judge that his client has received counseling, volunteered for a disabled veterans hockey club, and sought to pay for the damages to Benes’ wheelchair.

“I am deeply sorry for my behavior on Saturday,” Briere said in a statement in March. “There is no excuse for my actions, and I will do whatever I can to make up for this serious lack of judgment.”

Briere plans to continue his hockey career in Europe next year.

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