In Santa Ana, California, a civil trial took an intriguing turn on Monday as the ex-wife of a Los Angeles Angels employee, who is central to a tragic overdose case, shared her testimony. She described witnessing players and clubhouse staff exchanging pills and alcohol during their flights on the team plane.

Camela Kay recounted her experiences flying with the Angels alongside her then-husband, Eric Kay. He was previously convicted for supplying the drugs that led to the 2019 overdose death of Angels pitcher Tyler Skaggs. She vividly remembered players engaging in card games, gambling, and excessive drinking during these flights.

“They’re treated like kings,” Camela Kay observed, reflecting on the behavior she noticed on the plane. She recalled instances of pills being passed around and alcohol being consumed heavily.

Her testimony was part of a wrongful-death lawsuit initiated by Skaggs’ family. They argue that the Angels bear responsibility for allowing a drug-addicted communications director to remain employed, granting him access to players. The Angels, however, have maintained that they were unaware of Skaggs’ drug use, asserting that any drug-related activities occurred privately, away from the team’s oversight.

Camela Kay also expressed her concerns about Eric Kay’s drug-related issues, sparked by his erratic behavior. In 2017, she and her family attempted an intervention. Following this, two team officials visited their home, and one discovered several plastic bags filled with white pills in the bedroom. This discovery heightened her fears that Eric was not only battling addiction but potentially involved in drug dealing for financial gain.

“Him being in the clubhouse with the players, my guess would be he is supplying to them,” she said.

Camela Kay also described how her then-husband was driven home by an Angels employee after he was dancing in his office, shirtless, at the stadium in 2019. After he got home, she found a bottle with blue pills inside and called police to press him to go to the hospital, where doctors diagnosed an overdose involving six different drugs, she said.

He was hospitalized for three days and then went to rehab, which was communicated in text messages between Camela Kay and team officials shown to jurors.

She said her sister-in-law told her after visiting Eric in the hospital that he told her the pills were for Skaggs. She said she found text messages on his phone about him getting his “candy” at the stadium and relayed the information about both to Angels officials.

She said she was concerned about Eric heading on the road with the Angels after completing a six-week stint in rehab, adding he was still acting erratic and she suspected he was abusing a drug meant to treat opioid addiction.

After Skaggs’ death, Camela Kay filed for divorce, according to Orange County court records.

She is expected to continue testifying on Tuesday.

The trial comes more than six years after Skaggs, then 27, was found dead in the suburban Dallas hotel room where he was staying as the Angels were supposed to open a four-game series against the Texas Rangers. A coroner’s report said Skaggs choked to death on his vomit and a toxic mix of alcohol, fentanyl and oxycodone was found in his system.

Eric Kay was convicted in 2022 of providing Skaggs with a counterfeit oxycodone pill laced with fentanyl and sentenced to 22 years in prison. His federal criminal trial in Texas included testimony from five MLB players who said they received oxycodone from him at various times from 2017 to 2019, the years he was accused of obtaining pills and giving them to Angels players.

Skaggs had been a regular in the Angels’ starting rotation since late 2016 and struggled with injuries repeatedly during that time. He previously played for the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Skaggs’ family is seeking $118 million in lost earnings, compensation for pain and suffering and punitive damages against the team.

After Skaggs’ death, the MLB reached a deal with the players association to start testing for opioids and to refer those who test positive to the treatment board.

The trial is expected to take weeks and has included testimony from Angels outfielder Mike Trout and team employees.