Sam Fitzgerald – Another young life lost to violence

Published: 23 April 2010
by RÓISÍN GADELRAB

A HEAVY cloud of bereavement hangs over the teenagers in Bingfield Park.

The funeral of 16-year-old teenager Jessie Wright has yet to take place, but they have just lost another of their number in the most violent of circumstances.

Former St Aloysius pupil Sam Fitzgerald, fondly known as Mad Sam, the big brother of the group, was killed less than two weeks ago outside the Thornhill Arms pub, off Caledonian Road.

Contrary to early reports, friends say 20-year-old Sam was not a pub regular and the attack was not football-related.

In fact, he had just left his home opposite the Thornhill, popped into the pub quickly and was on the way to meet his friend Stevie Parker for a drink.

But he never made it that far, and died after being stabbed outside the pub. The same friends and families who mourned the loss of schoolgirl Jessie, who was found dead in the nearby Delhi Outram Estate in March, still gather in the evenings in Bingfield Park, off Caledonian Road. To a passer-by, it would appear little has changed.

The same boys hang out on their bikes, slam footballs across the pitch and call out to their mates. On one side, children play at Crumbles Castle adventure playground and on the other, groups of teenage girls gather to chat, smoke and gossip.

But so much has changed. 

These young people, some as young as six or seven, are acutely aware of premature death.

The hoardings at one end of the park have been covered in tributes to their lost friends, a sheet, decorated at an impromptu tribute party for Sam on Saturday, hangs on the fence of Crumbles Castle and “RIP” messages adorn paving slabs and street furniture.

The teenagers say they are “numb”. They are not ready for solutions yet – they simply want their two friends back.

Just three weeks ago, Sam, atop his favourite bike, was leading a march for Jessie.

He was tearing up and down the street, shaking the collection tin and cajoling shopkeepers and locals to hand over their  cash for a memorial for Jessie. He emptied his own pockets and pledged to give more.

Now, the very same friends who marched for Jessie, are collecting for a memorial to Sam.

Sam was one of the older members of the group. He had Irish roots and lived with his family. An Irish flag and scarf have been laid alongside his bicycle at a shrine opposite the pub. He had just become the proud owner of a Japanese Akita dog named Ice.

One of the girls in the group is Molly Wright, sister of Jessie.

Struggling for words to sum up the violence, she said: “It still hasn’t sunk in yet. I still miss her loads.”

Stevie Parker, who was instrumental in organising the march for Jessie and whose own cousin, 19-year-old Michael, was killed in Stoke Newington last November, said: “He was my brother’s best mate. They grew up together. He was on his way to have a beer with me. We’re going to try to do something for him.”

She added: “It’s still really hard to deal with losing two friends. Words can’t describe what we’re feeling. We’re all numb. 

“We just want our two friends to be remembered. It’s hard because you hear about it in other places like South London but you don’t expect to lose two of your closest friends here in a matter of five weeks. It’s unimaginable. We don’t know what to feel.”

Friend Denise Wootton added: “It makes you respect every day you’re here.”

Bobbie Lovell, another friend, said: “Most of the boys looked up to him. You knew you were safe around him. He looked after all the girls, all the boys. He was like a brother to everyone.”

Boys in the park on Monday told how much Sam meant to them.

Wesley Jordan-Brooks, 16, said: “I knew him through my brother. I had a lot of respect for him. He was one of those people that made this area happy. Because everyone round here knew him, it shocked everyone. It’s not about our own safety. We’ve lost someone.”

Another said there were “a lot more smiles” when Sam was around.

On Saturday more than 100 people turned up to the park for an party in celebration of Sam’s life. The sun shone, a barbecue was fired up, and music played until the early hours. Sam’s friends put their tributes on a sheet, which is still hanging up in the park.

Caledonian ward councillor Paul Convery said: “I still think we live in a safe part of London but people who live around here are increasingly anxious that something’s not quite right. 

“There’s something about the way young people get on with each other. They seem to be able to resort to violence to settle disputes when perhaps a generation ago they may not have. 

“At the very centre of this we’ve got young people who’ve not really learned what the boundaries are.”

He said young people need to be encouraged to be involved in more supported activities, and that older mentors should give guidance in employment. Cllr Convery also said there need to be more youth clubs, and complained that White Lion Street is the nearest  one to the Bemerton Estate.

He added: “The people who make the policies are in their £80,000 a year jobs, look at a map and don’t realise that’s a distance to go. It’s not in their neighbourhood. All the evidence shows that the best youth interventions are the ones in very local streets.”

• A fundraiser for Sam will take place at The Chapel Bar, Penton Street, tonight (Friday). DJs are working for free and all door proceeds – £5 entry – will go to Sam’s family for funeral arrangements.

Inquest opens into Sam’s death

AN inquest has been formally opened into the death of 20-year-old Sam Fitzgerald, who died after being stabbed outside the Thornhill Arms pub in Islington, writes Josie Hinton.

Mr Fitzgerald, of Priory Heights in Wynford Road, died at the Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel shortly after the incident last Wednesday.

A Home Office pathologist found that he died from stab wounds to the stomach, spleen and aorta. 

Detective Sergeant Robert Pack told St Pancras Coroner’s Court on Tuesday that police were “keeping an open mind” over the murder weapon.

He told the court a suspect was arrested at the weekend and released on bail. 

The suspect is due to answer bail this week.

Coroner Dr Andrew Reid said: “This was a violent, unnatural death and it appears there has been third party involvement.”

The police investigation is ongoing.

Psychiatrist – ‘Sense of loss is profound’

MARTIN Dinnegan, Nassirudeen Osawe, Ben Kinsella, Jessie Wright and now Sam Fitzgerald – all murdered in this borough before the age of 21.

Islington is in mourning, and many are learning to deal with loss at a young age. Aggrey Burke, consultant psychiatrist at St George’s University, believes there needs to be more help for youngsters.

He said: “I met a youngster who had lost four or five friends. This sense of loss is absolutely profound. 

“They have the funeral and then I guess they have flashbacks. School counsellors are not on top of it. Counsellors, leaders of churches, mosques, temples, and parents all have an important part to play.”

He said there is an underlying culture of alienation, adding: “We’ve got gangs, high levels of unemployment amongst young people.”

But he asks how youngsters deal with loss, adding: “They can become restless, have short concentration at work, smoke ganja, get irritable.”

“Islington is a contradictory place. 

“On one hand there’s Tony Blair’s bit but on the other hand it’s in some ways disintegrated. “There’s an urgent need for local services, counsellors, GPs and others to set up walk-in facilities that youngsters have access to, to deal with tremendous feelings of grief and loss.”