SCHUYLER COUNTY, New York (WWNY) – A grand jury has found there’s not enough evidence to file criminal charges in connection with the death of Watertown firefighter Peyton Morse.
That’s according to Schuyler County District Attorney Joe Fazzary.
Morse died after a March 3, 2021 incident at the New York State Fire Academy in Montour Falls, which is in Schuyler County.
The 21-year-old was overcome while completing the last in a series of obstacles, essentially, exercises in learning how to get out of difficult and life-threatening situations.
A grand jury was assembled to consider criminal charges.
The panel heard testimony from Watertown Fire Chief Matt Timerman and Dave Morse, Peyton’s father, in August.
“Over the last three months, evidence was presented to the grand jury, which concluded its deliberations late last week. The grand jury ultimately determined there was insufficient evidence to warrant charges being brought against anyone at the fire academy for causing Morse’s death. The criminal case is now officially closed,” Fazzary said in a news release.
A report by state safety experts found no violations of health or safety standards, despite the testimony of other trainees, who said they saw instructors yelling at Morse as he lay on the floor, not breathing.
Morse’s parents have been critical of the fire academy. They believe it’s an environment of hazing and bullying, and that their son was the victim of a crime.
Timerman has also been critical of the investigation into the incident. On Monday, he spoke out about the grand jury’s findings.
“He was stuck in a box and he went into cardiac arrest and died in arm’s reach from multiple state instructors who did nothing, continued to mock him and let him know how he was letting them down. And finally, when they realized something was wrong, it was too late, and now we’ve lost our opportunity to hold people criminally liable,” said Timerman.
Timerman doesn’t have enough confidence right now in the academy and won’t send recruits there, echoing it’s an environment of hazing and bullying.
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