The ongoing case of Matthew Mayich's preseason injury has taken a new turn as the family has now asked for an independent investigation into the situation.
Mayich tragically collapsed during a workout on Aug. 20 and has been in hospital ever since. His condition has since worsened dramatically. Family attorney Robert Carey said Wednesday that Mayich has no chance of recovery and that his condition should not be described as a coma because it is irreversible.
The hockey world has rallied around the St. Louis Blues prospect, and all we're hoping for is him to pull through.
Though the logistics surrounding his critical injury are under scrutiny, as it was revealed that Mayich collapsed during a coach-led workout, and Arizona State's initial silence raised many eyebrows. They have since acknowledged the situation and are conducting an internal investigation - but it doesn't end there.
Two investigations are now looking at what happened to Matthew Mayich
The Mayich family feels that isn't enough and are also going to be looking into independent investigation into the matter in addition to the internal investigation but forth by the school.
The Athletic's Katie Strang provided a bit more information:
The Arizona State University Police Department is investigating the events surrounding the collapse and hospitalization of hockey player Matthew Mayich, two people familiar with the investigation confirmed to The Athletic.
Both spoke on condition of anonymity because they are not authorized to speak publicly on the matter. One said the law enforcement agency is assessing whether any criminal acts occurred and said this investigation is separate from the “review” the university has said it is conducting. The other said police have begun the process of reaching out to players.
The ASU Police operates independently from the Tempe police - where the incident occurred - and is also not linked at all to the school's internal investigation. The Athletic also noted that the coach involved - Tim Ziesel - has not responded to any calls, emails or inquiries regarding the incident.
Obviously, with a situation as emotionally charged and tragic as this, the family wants closure and feels that perhaps the University's findings won't suffice.
Mayich's family still wants the case examined outside Arizona State
ASU Police is currently the law-enforcement agency examining whether any criminal conduct occurred. That investigation is separate from the university's internal review, while the family is still asking for a truly independent third-party investigation outside the university structure.
There is no guarantee this is going to happen, and until this investigation is concluded all we can do is speculate. But it does show that the Mayich family is going to stop at nothing to get answers regarding what happened to Matthew.
This wasn't a situation where Matthew was accidentally exposed to a dangerous envrionment. The workout was purposefully outside during a heat wave with exercises that were described as followed:
Multiple people described the session as a punishing military-style workout in which players were made to do sprints, planks, pushups and bear crawls with an emphasis on repeating instructions back to the instructor and keeping a correct count of each exercise.
Players who failed to do either or lagged behind other groups were forced to complete extra sprints or exercises.
The allegations are serious, particularly the claims involving limited water access, punishment for stopping and a military-style workout in extreme heat and we need to see what evidence comes out of this investigation.
It isn't too surprising then to see Mayich's family go the extra mile and make sure they have a full, thorough and transparent investigation into this terrible situation because someone needs to take accountability and justice must be priority.
Will ASU be punished for what happened to Matthew Mayich?
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