Horror as father is beaten to death in front of 12-year-old son on his own doorstep while protecting his other son, 14, when a high school brawl spills over and a gang shows up telling him, “If he’s not going to fight, we’re going to fight you’
- Vader died after a group showed up at his Maryland home looking for a fight
- Teenagers and adults severely beat Mr. Wright, who died Saturday with a brain injury
A father was killed on his doorstep while trying to defend his 14-year-old son after a fight broke out at a local school and a group poured into the Maryland home, his family says.
Christopher Wright, 43, was swept up in a fight that started at Brooklyn Park Middle School and moved into his home in Anne Arundel County, his fiancée Tracy Karopchinsky said.
She says her 14-year-old son got into an altercation with another teenager at school on Friday before three adolescents and two adults showed up at her home.
Her husband told the group that their son would not fight, to which they reportedly replied, “If he’s not going to fight, then you’re going to fight us.”
Wright was brutally beaten by the group, watched by his 12-year-old son who ran to his aid while screaming “daddy, daddy, daddy,” and was taken to a trauma center. He was pronounced dead on Saturday after suffering a traumatic brain injury.
Christopher Wright, 43, who died after suffering brain damage when he was beaten up outside his door
The fight was captured on security cameras of the victim and a neighbor, That reports WBAL-TV.
Karopchinsky said, “My dad and I tried to get on camera, and the first video that comes up is my 12-year-old son screaming, ‘Papa, Papa, Papa,’ and running out of the house to go into the street and help his father.
After that I couldn’t watch anymore. I just couldn’t.’
She said her three children were home when their father was attacked.
The victim’s sister-in-law, Kristin Karopchinsky, said, “I’ll never forget the sound, I’ll never forget the sound my nephews made when we had to tell them he was gone.”
School officials acknowledged that the fight had taken place and said they were working to address the issue.
They are cooperating with the police on the investigation. Police have said charges could be brought against those involved in the brutal attack.
Marc Limansky, spokesman for the Anne Arundel County Police Department, said: “Anyone who assisted or was an accomplice to or was an accomplice to the prime suspect or prime suspect in this incident would be guilty.”
Karopchinsky emphasized the devastating effect her husband’s death would have on her children and the children who attacked him.
She said, “They didn’t just ruin our lives. Their lives will change forever. Their parents’ lives will change forever, and no one thinks about that just after a fight.
“It’s everywhere, and somewhere, as parents, we’re failing these kids […] It is not the school’s responsibility. It is our responsibility,” she said.
Wright is depicted with Karopchinsky and children. She said parents were responsible for ‘abandoning these kids’
She said her husband was a devoted father who loved the stars and gardening, and shared WJZ she was engaged to her partner for eight years.
She said the world “lost a light” when he died.
The family plans a candlelight vigil in memory of Christopher Wright.
Homicide detectives are actively investigating the incident and are asking anyone with information to contact them at (410) 222-4731 or the Anne Arundel County Police Tip Line at (410) 222-4700.