A 14-year-old schoolboy took his own life in front of his classmates by stepping off a train platform to lie down on the tracks in front of an oncoming train.
Sam Connor from Surrey, England, handed his satchel and mobile phone to a friend before he stepped off the platform and was struck by an oncoming train at 4 p.m. on Monday, July 15. His suicide was possibly motivated by being bullied.
About 50 people, mainly teenagers, were on the platform of Chertsey railway station waiting for the train. It was one of the last school days before the summer holiday would start.
A passenger on the train from Chiswick named Lewis witnessed the incident. He told the Daily Mail:
“The train stopped very suddenly with only one carriage alongside the platform. I thought maybe one of the kids had dropped their phone as they were all looking down at the wheels of the carriage.”
“We saw some of the girls starting to cry…we saw some of the boys on their knees, calling, ‘Sam, Sam.’
“That’s when we realized something was wrong. There was a girl on her phone, crying and trying to talk to the driver.”
Emergency personnel responded to the scene, but Sam was already dead. Good samaritans provided help in consoling the students who were in shock.
Chertsey railway station was closed during the rest of the day as emergency teams cleared the remains.
British Railway police said in a statement, “The incident is not being treated as suspicious and a file will be prepared for the coroner,” the Daily Mail reported.
At the school Sam attended, Salesian Comprehensive Catholic School, the executive headteacher, James Kibble, wrote in a letter to the parents:
“This is an incredibly difficult situation but knowing the faith, compassion, and strength of our school community, I am confident that we will work together to support one another.”
Kibble noted that trauma counselors and a psychologist would be made available to help the children cope with the horrible event.
According to news outlet FaithIt, the school had denied all bullying accusations, but many students attested to Sam being a victim of bullying and that he often spent his school breaks alone.
Others, however, contended Sam was “bright and popular,” and one of the “nicest and most charming” boys at their local breakdancing club, according to The Sun.
The death of Sam Connor is not an isolated event. Bullying in the United States and abroad remains widespread among school-age children and can lead to suicide without proper intervention.
Bullying
According to Stop Bullying, a government group, 28 percent of students in the United States have experienced bullying while 70 percent of youth have seen bullying at school. Some 30 percent of respondents admitted to bullying in surveys, the group said.
In one study, about 49 percent of students in grades 4 through 12 reported being bullied by other students at school at least once during the previous month.
“The most common types of bullying are verbal and social. Physical bullying happens less often. Cyberbullying happens the least frequently,” the group stated. “Most bullying takes place in school, outside on school grounds, and on the school bus. Bullying also happens wherever kids gather in the community. And of course, cyberbullying occurs on cell phones and online.”
The relationship between bullying and suicide is complex, according to Stop Bullying.
While the vast majority of young people who are bullied don’t commit or attempt suicide, Stop Bullying said, “research indicates that persistent bullying can lead to or worsen feelings of isolation, rejection, exclusion, and despair, as well as depression and anxiety, which can contribute to suicidal behavior.”
