‘When Euan died, we all died a little’ say parents of pupil killed at school

THE parents of a schoolboy who died after he was punched in class by a fellow pupil said they “all died a little” after the tragedy.

Richard and Ann Craig said they were devastated by the death of their 14-year-old son, Euan, in May and have struggled to come to terms with the fact that he will never again come home.

Last week, another 14-year-old from Euan’s school – who cannot be named for legal reasons – pleaded guilty to culpable homicide in causing the schoolboy’s death by punching him on the head five times.

Euan’s grandparents have been unable to visit the family home in Cardonald, Glasgow, since the incident because they cannot face the memories of happier times.

Other family members also struggle to look at family photographs without tears. And younger sister Mhairi, 13, has been left without her closest confidant, said the family.

Mr Craig, 44, who works as a watch commander with Strathclyde Fire and Rescue, said: “It wasn’t just Euan who was killed. We have all died a little. None of us are the same as we were.

“There was no warning. It was just another day but within a few hours, in just a few seconds, all our lives, our hopes, were destroyed.

“We had so many happy times, so many happy days, but we didn’t know that would be all we have – memories.

“Euan and I used to have long chats about life and he seemed older and wiser than his years. He was a kind boy. A nice boy.”

At the High Court in Glasgow on Thursday, prosecutor John Scullion told the court how Euan was awaiting the start of a gym class at Rosshall Academy, Crookston, in Glasgow when he threw a sponge ball that accidentally hit the other 14-year-old. The boy then shouted, swore and punched Euan about five times to the left side of the head.

Shortly after, the teenager collapsed and was taken to hospital. He was declared dead the next afternoon.

Yesterday, his family recounted how, months before he was killed, Euan had gone to the aid of an elderly man who fell in the street. The pupil called an ambulance and stayed with the man until it arrived. His family only found out when his school presented a special citizenship award for his actions.

Mrs Craig, 44, who works with homeless people, said: “That tells you everything you need to know about the boy I am so proud to call my son.

“You send your son off to school a happy, healthy boy with his whole life ahead of him and you don’t think twice. He’s fine, he’s safe. But he wasn’t safe. He was killed and that is so hard to accept – to accept that I’ll never hear him saying, ‘Love you, mum’ or hear him laughing at one of his own daft wee jokes.

“How can a mother ever accept their child’s life was ended so cruelly, so suddenly? I can’t make sense of it.”