A 13-year-old boy who was found dead in a school playground had left home after a row, hoping someone would follow him, a coroner has ruled.
Connor Lee Mark Slade was discovered unresponsive in the grounds of Melin Primary School in Mile End Row, Neath, in January this year. An inquest heard that the teenager, who had no history of suicidal thoughts or self-harm, had stormed out after a family argument and had not intended to take his own life, reports the Mirror.
His mother, Louise Morgan, described Connor as “a happy boy, one of the lads, a joker and leader of the pack.” The court heard that while he would often leave the house following arguments, he would usually calm down and return soon after.
Connor, who was receiving help from Neath Port Talbot social services, had a good group of friends but had been excluded from multiple schools. According to Detective Constable Siobhan Danaher, he also had 100 police convictions. He had previously lived with his father Keiran Slade before returning to live with his mother at age ten. He was one of nine children.
The inquest heard that on January 28, the day before his death, Connor had been out until about 9.30pm. When he returned home, he was reportedly in a good mood and using his phone. But a bottle of vodka and an aerosol were found to be missing, prompting a confrontation with his mother and stepfather Jason Clark. Connor “kicked off” and left the house, briefly returning to grab his shoes and making a threat to “jump off a bridge” before storming out again.
His mother and stepfather told police Connor had made similar threats before but would always return. Nevertheless, Jason went out to look for him but was unable to find him. Assistant coroner Paul Bennett explained that as Louise was calling the police in the early hours of January 29, their friends David “Dai” Morrow and Amy Winslade, who were visiting, left the house and moments later shouted “Connor, Connor” after spotting his body in the nearby school playground.
Jason rushed out and attempted mouth-to-mouth resuscitation before paramedics arrived. Connor was pronounced dead at 3.43am.
Toxicology results showed minor traces of alcohol and cannabis in his system, but these were not at fatal levels and were ruled out as contributing factors.
Assistant coroner Paul Bennett gave a narrative conclusion, stating: “In my view this was not a deliberate act on Connor’s part to end his own life. I am not satisfied Connor intended to end his life. Intent cannot be presumed, so I give a narrative conclusion.”
He added: “History suggests Connor had a quick and violent temper, he found it hard to control. We will never know, but I consider it likely that he had an altercation about missing aerosol and alcohol and Connor’s temper got the better of him. Acting on impulse he went to the school and took the step he did thinking someone would come looking for him before it was fatal.”