Can one stupid mistake change your life?
18-year-old Kieran Loveridge has been charged with the murder of Thomas Kelly, the teenager who died after being king hit by Loveridge in the increasingly controversial nightlife hub of Sydney’s King Cross. New South Wales court will have to determine whether the fatal unprovoked assault was in fact a stupid mistake – one with disastrous consequences – or actual murder.
Loveridge is also facing charges for assault occasioning actual bodily harm and two counts of common assault from separate incidents on the same night Kelly was fatally struck, Saturday 7th July.
The media have already labeled the series of violent acts a “crime spree”, which will send the public perception of Loveridge even lower. And to make matters worse, earlier today as Loveridge appeared in court, one of his supporters punched a news cameraman to the ground outside Burwood Police Station:
Image via 9 News Facebook page
If Loveridge is found guilty of murder he will face years in prison. Throwing a punch is always an act of violence, and while it seems clear that Loveridge is a violent individual he is also a teenager, and time and time again we’ve witnessed the stupid, irresponsible, dangerous behaviour of teenagers. Hitting a person is one of them.
And when that stupid, irresponsible, dangerous behaviour results in the tragic death of another person we’re immediately forced to reassess:
Is every punch that gets thrown an attempted murder?
Is 18-year-old Kieran Loveridge a murderer?
He has been denied bail. Now we wait to see if that one punch can destroy two young lives.
Via The Australian
Photo by Lisa Marie Williams for Getty Images Entertainment
