By DAVID DUPONT
BG Independent News
On the night of March 4, 2021, Maddy Borja bent over her boyfriend and prayed for him while Foltz’s roommate Wade Mackenzie, drawing on his training in Boy Scouts, performed CPR.
That harrowing scene played out Monday in courtroom 4 of Wood County Common Pleas Court as the trial of two men charged in Foltz’s death continued.
Jacob Krinn, 21, of Delaware, Ohio, who was Foltz’s “big brother” in the pledging process, faces charges of first degree felony involuntary manslaughter, third degree felony involuntary manslaughter, reckless homicide, felonious assault, hazing, failure to comply with underage Alcohol Laws, and Obstructing Official Business.
Troy Henricksen, 24, of Grove City, who was the new member educator and a former president of the fraternity, faces charges of third degree felony involuntary manslaughter, reckless homicide, tampering with evidence, hazing, and failure to comply with underage alcohol laws.
The trial that began with jury selection a week ago is expected to continue until late this week.
Monday’s testimony focused on the hours after Foltz was dropped off at his apartment after consuming a fifth of whiskey.
Mackenzie found Foltz on the couch of their Falcon Point apartment with water and a waste basket nearby. He knew that Foltz and been anticipating a heavy night of drinking, so this, at first, didn’t concern him until he realized his friend was turning blue.
He called Borja who arrived with one of her roommates.
She called 911. That call, which was played for the jury, has the operator trying to talk Mackenzie through CPR while the two women are frantic in the background.
Borja in her testimony said they were praying over Foltz.
A Bowling Green police officer was the first to arrive on the scene and took over for Mackenzie.
Brian Gutman, a BG paramedic and firefighter, testified that when they arrived Foltz still had a pulse but was not breathing on his own.
The crew transported him to Wood County Hospital where he was treated by Dr. Ross McDermott. When arrived just after midnight, Foltz did have a pulse but he was not breathing on his own, and was unresponsive to any kind of stimulation.
The level of acidity in his blood was “very high” indicating his body had been starved of oxygen for a long period of time.
His brain was so swollen, McDermott said, that he couldn’t tell the difference between the gray and white matter.
McDermott determined Foltz needed more critical care than was available at Wood County Hospital, so he was transported by air ambulance to a Toledo hospital.
Foltz died March 7.
Borja also spoke about Foltz’s concerns about the amount of drinking involved, and how much being accepted in the fraternity meant to him. She recounted a time when he went to lunch on campus with her and a friend. He was unable to dress in a suit as required of a pledge on that day. He would pull the hood of his sweatshirt up to guard from someone from the fraternity seeing him.
Another friend Mackenzie Wells, a nursing student, was also in Foltz’s apartment on the night of March 4. She arrived after the EMT crew.
She was concerned about contacting Foltz’s parents, but no one could access Foltz’s telephone. She called around to fraternity members, and eventually talked to Krinn.
There was a lot of noise on his end of the call indicating that he was at a bar. She testified that though he responded to several of her questions, when she asked about Foltz’s condition he said he couldn’t hear her and the call ended. She noted he did not step out where he might be able to hear her better.
