Founding St. Pete Pride board member Carl Kuttler III leapt to his death on Friday, April 22, after he dialed a local news anchor man from the top of the Sunshine Skyway Bridge.
Kuttler, who served on the St. Pete Pride board during the festival's first two years, was a businessman who launched his business, Kuttler Kitchens, in the 1990s. He was 43.
â┚¬Å”The energy with which he helped put together that first Pride was amazing,â┚¬Â said fellow founding St. Pete Pride member Brian Longstreth. â┚¬Å”Starting a street festival from scratch with no experience was an amazing job. The festival started off fast and furious and he was a large part of making that happen.â┚¬ÂÂ
According to the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office, Kuttler parked his 2006 Infiniti on the median of the bridge and dialed Bay News 9 anchor Al Ruechel around 2:30 p.m. Ruechel told the St. Petersburg Times that Kuttler had done kitchen work for him. While the news anchor tried to convince Kuttler not to jump, the station dialed 911. By the time authorities arrived, Kuttler was no longer on the Skyway. A boater found his body in Tampa Bay shortly after.
The Kuttler family is influential in Tampa Bay and Kuttler's father, Carl Kuttler Jr., was president of St. Petersburg College from 1978 to 2009. The elder Kuttler is very conservative.
â┚¬Å”St. Petersburg College is deeply saddened by the tragic death of Carl Kuttler III,â┚¬Â SPC president Bill Law said in a statement. â┚¬Å”Carl Kuttler Jr. has many friends and former colleagues who will be thinking of him and his family at this most difficult time.â┚¬ÂÂ
It was unclear if Carl Kuttler III left a note explaining his actions.
As of 2009, nearly 140 people had leapt to their deaths off of the iconic bridge, which opened in 1987.
