Autopsy Set For Lifelong Cubs Fan Who Died After Fall At Wrigley Field
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Richard Garrity Sr. was searching for answers Thursday, a day after his losing his son and namesake, a lifelong Cubs fan who fell over a railing at Wrigley Field while leaving a game.
An autopsy was scheduled for Thursday for 42-year-old Richard Garrity Jr., who was at Tuesday's Cubs-Reds game when he tumbled over a railing for unknown reasons around 11 p.m. as he was exiting the stadium.
The fall caused him to strike his head, causing severe trauma. Garrity Jr. was taken to Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center, where he died Wednesday afternoon.
Garrity Jr., his wife and some colleagues had just watched the Cubs begin a 10-game homestand by hosting the Cincinnati Reds. More than half an hour after the last out, the father of two from Wheaton fell over a railing as he was on his way out.
His father said Garrity Jr. was so admired that loved ones filled four waiting rooms at the hospital, hoping and praying he would recover. Then came the heartbreaking news he wouldn't survive.
"He just touched everybody," Garrity Sr. said. "He was kind, generous, funny, sympathetic. Take any positive trait, and he had 'em."
The Cubs offered their condolences on Wednesday.
"The thoughts and prayers of our entire organization are with his family during this difficult time," the team said in a prepared statement.
