Petco Park Deaths Deemed Homicide-Suicide by San Diego Police, Family Fights Back

A 40-year-old mother and her 2-year-old son both died at Petco Park in San Diego, and police have deemed their deaths a homicide-suicide. This happened around 4 p.m. on September 25 of last year, after the two reportedly fell from the third story of the stadium, equivalent to six stories high. 

Police came to the area where the mother and son fell and started to do CPR, but they still died on the scene from their injuries. Why or how the two fell may still be up for debate.

The father of the child was also at the ballpark at the time of the incident, but declined requests for an interview from late last year.

Thousands of fans were coming into the stadium for a game between the San Diego Padres and the Atlanta Braves when the incident occured. At approximately 3:50 p.m, according to ESPN, the two were reported to have fallen from the third level of the park. When this happened, officers assigned to the game were alerted.

The mother and son had fallen onto the sidewalk at 200 Tony Gwyn Way, as reported by police who arrived on the scene. An ABC15 article reports that police found that the deaths appeared to be suspicious, so a homicide unit was called onto the scene for further investigations. How they determined the situation to be suspicious is unclear.

The detectives conducted dozens of interviews, reviewed all available footage of the incident, and collected background information in order to determine what led to the deaths, according to police statements. 

During the investigation, detectives discovered that the pair were initially in the dining and concessions area before the fall. The two were pronounced dead at 4:11 p.m, approximately 20 minutes after police were alerted.

At least one witness is noted as saying that Wilkins had jumped up onto a bench and was laughing before she lost her balance and fell.

Police have recently classified Raquel Wilkins’ death as suicide, and her son’s death as a homicide. According to the Associated Press, these determinations were made in consultation with the San Diego County Medical Examiner.

Lt. Adam Sharki says that San Diego police will not be releasing anymore information regarding the case.

Despite these determinations, the family’s attorney is disputing these findings. Attorney Dan Gilleon claims that the deaths were a tragic accident and that the conclusions drawn by the investigation are meant to protect the city from any potential litigation.

Allegedly, in a domestic dispute from 2016, one of Wilkins’ ex-boyfriends claims that she’d had a history of suicidal behavior, as well as accusing him of abuse and looking to get a restraining order against him. However, Gilleon told USA Today in a text message that Wilkins’ family has never heard of or seen any suicidal ideation with Wilkins.

USA Today reports that Gilleon and the family are considering filing a lawsuit against the city, which owns 70% of Petco Park. On Twitter, Gillon claims the “SDPD will tell the world that Raquel Wilkins (killed) herself and her baby… But they won’t have the human decency to bother to explain why they think that. Imagine how Raquel’s family feels at such awfulness.”

Gilleon says that a wrongful death lawsuit on behalf of Wilkins’ parents is presently pending against Petco Park and San Diego, and that he plans to file a tort claim with the city in about a week.

“All accounts were that she was smiling and having fun until she, for some reason, ended up on the picnic table that was right up against the railing” before she fell, states Gilleon. He continues that the height of the railing is “all but negated” when a table is next to it, claiming the city is acting to blame the victim in the situation.

In an article published by Yahoo, Gilleon goes further, “The city of San Diego owns that ballpark, it is legally responsible, assuming that what caused her to fall was anything but her intent.”

“The only way the city is not at fault is if she intended to kill herself and her baby,” the attorney says.

The San Diego Padres, the home baseball team of the stadium, released a statement: “In light of [the] statement from the San Diego Police Department we want to reiterate our deepest sympathy and condolences to the family of those involved in this tragedy.

Anyone needing mental health or considering suicide can call the National Suicide Prevention Hotline at 800-273-8255.