1 Suspect To Face Ethnic Intimidation Charges At Trial In Wood St. T Station Attack
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- Five men have been ordered to stand trial in connection with the beating of an African American man after the Kenny Chesney concert back in May, but not all were charged with directly causing it.
Ethnic intimidation charges were dropped against some of the defendants, but the man shown in the video attacking the victim was ordered to stand trial on all charges.
There was a lot of tension in the courtroom as defense attorneys pressed the victim for details.
The victim, Kevin Lockett, told them he couldn't remember much of the incident other than he was thrown onto the tracks and then beaten. It happened in May following the Kenny Chesney concert at Heinz Field.
The whole incident was caught on surveillance video.
In the video, Lockett appears pulling a cooler. Eventually, he's involved in a confrontation with a group of white men.
Lockett testified earlier that he heard the "N-word" used on the T but couldn't identify who said it.
On the platform, though, whatever was said led to the assault.
Lockett says he was thrown from the platform onto the tracks. Investigators say he's lucky the Pittsburgh subway system isn't like the one in New York where electric current flows through a third rail.
Prosecutors say Ryan Kyle is the person who threw Lockett off the platform.
"I got thrown on the railroad tracks," Lockett said back in June. "They didn't have any intentions on me being alive, I don't think."
The video shows Lockett climb back onto the platform, then Kyle, according to prosecutors confronts him again, this time with fists.
Lockett is still undergoing treatment for his injuries. During the hearing, he was at times frustrated with the legal process and the discipline of what questions and answers are permissible in court, and at times, the judge gave him time to collect himself.
WEB EXTRA: Watch the surveillance video:
In the end, Kyle was ordered to stand trial on all charges, including attempted homicide.
His lawyer said he's undergoing anger management sessions.
"I thought given the circumstances and what we saw in the video, it was an obvious step that he needed to take to show the court that he was truly remorseful for the situation that had occurred," said Burke.
Kyle also will face ethnic intimidation charges at trial, but that charge was dropped against David Depretis and Matthew La Place.
There's still a federal investigation of whether federal civil rights laws have been violated.
Join The Conversation On The KDKA Facebook Page
Stay Up To Date, Follow KDKA On Twitter
