Local

Mt. Lebanon grad dies after being sucker punched in South Carolina street fight

CHARLESTON, SC — Authorities said a Mt. Lebanon native died Monday in Charleston, S.C. after a street fight a few days earlier left him in a coma.

Channel 11's Jennifer Tomazic spoke to the Charleston Coroner's Office, who said 27-year-old Clinton Seymour died of a head injury at MUSC Hospital on Monday.

Charleston police said Seymour, who was a week shy of his 28th birthday, was with two friends just after 1:30 a.m. Saturday walking down the street when someone made a joke.

Another group of men heard the joke, and an argument started.

Peter Dudinyak, 26, is accused of punching Seymour, who fell and hit his head on the concrete, police said.

Police charged Dudinyak with assault and battery. Police did not immediately respond to an inquiry about whether they will change the charges against Dudinyak.

Seymour graduated from Mt. Lebanon High School in 2004 and went on to play baseball at Eastern Kentucky University.

Seymour was close friends with Pirates star Neil Walker. Walker and his wife flew to Charleston on Monday to be with Seymour in the hospital. They played baseball together on Amateur Athletic Union teams in school.

Walker sent a statement to Channel 11 News saying, “Clint was a dear, special friend to me and my wife Niki. He always had a smile on his face and his charisma and heart lifted up so many people. He will be missed dearly by so many, but we will celebrate the memories and good years we had with him while he was on this earth.”

Channel 11 News has learned that prior to his move to South Carolina, Seymour worked at SOHO on the North Shore and for Pirates Charities.

“He was very personable and never in a bad mood.  He was always happy and could make your crappy day turn into a good one,” said SOHO General Manager Karen Weil.

Weil said she spoke with Seymour the other day, and the last thing he sent her was a photo of a sunset, which he said he loved.

“He was someone who really brought a lot of sunshine to your life,” Weil said.

Channel 11’s news exchange partners at TribLIVE contributed to this report.