US mother identified as person killed in fall at daughter’s Ohio State University graduation ceremony

A woman fell from the stands to her death during a graduation ceremony at Ohio State University last weekend. Photo / AP

WARNING: This story discusses suspected suicide and may be distressing.

A woman who fell from the stands to her death during a graduation ceremony at Ohio State University last weekend has been identified as a Georgia resident, authorities announced on Tuesday.

The Franklin County Coroner’s Office said Larissa Brady, 53, was pronounced dead at the scene near Ohio Stadium in Columbus on Sunday. The Columbus Dispatch reported the death was being investigated as an apparent suicide, citing coroner documents.

An investigation continues into how Brady fell from the stadium, which the school says is 41m in height, to the pavement below. However, Ohio state police did not suspect foul play and believed the fall was not accidental, university spokesman Ben Johnson said on Tuesday.

It happened about noon near the stadium’s Bell Tower, as the last graduates were filing into the stadium. According to the commencement programme, Brady’s daughter was among those graduating.

The commencement continued without mention of what happened, but some students and others at the ceremony were visibly upset after the fall. A spokesman said the university had contacted all graduates and staff who volunteered at graduation to offer counselling services.