Carson Briere, son of Flyers interim GM Danny Briere and Mercyhurst hockey player, recently apologized after video caught him pushing a woman’s wheelchair down a flight of stairs at a local bar.
The woman, who has asked to remain anonymous while things are sorted out, had to be carried down the stairs in order to be taken to the bathroom. Video footage from the stairwell camera was posted to Twitter by a user who referred to herself as Julia Zukowski.
She identified Carson, seen wearing a white baseball cap, as the one who pushed the wheelchair.
I usually don’t post anything serious on my twitter but something happened Saturday night and just can’t stomach the thought of this kid getting away with it. In the video below is a @MercyhurstU student and is currently on the @HurstMensHockey team. Carson Briere. pic.twitter.com/kWWlEYEc7V
— julia (@juliazukowski) March 14, 2023
In the video, you can see Carson and another unidentified person talking in the stairwell. A third person comes up the stairs and points out the wheelchair as Carson is then seen sitting down in said chair. After trying to use the chair, the other person pushes it to the edge of the stairs as Carson then proceeds to shove it down the stairs.
The two then walk into the bar as the chair came be seen lying at the bottom of the stairs. Mercyhurst, in reply to the above tweet, put out a statement in regards to an investigation that will be taking place following the release of this video.
— Mercyhurst University (@MercyhurstU) March 15, 2023
This is not the first time that Briere has found himself in trouble during his collegiate career. As a red-shirt freshman attending Arizona State University in 2019-20, Briere would be dismissed from the team for violating team policy.
His reasoning for the dismissal was that he was “partying too much” and wasn’t focused on hockey. He would go on to play in the BCHL later in the year, returning to college hockey during the 2020-21 season. Both Danny and Carson have responded to the incident.
"“I was shocked to see Carson’s actions in the video that was shared on social media yesterday,” he wrote. “They are inexcusable and run completely counter to our family’s values on treating people with respect.”“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.”"
There has been nothing further on what happens next for Carson or the woman whose wheelchair was damaged. But Zukowski mentioned that she knows the woman who owns the wheelchair and has posted a GoFundMe to raise money to help pay for a new wheelchair. It appears there may be legal action as well, as mentioned by Zukowski.