After Margaret Mizen’s truly selfless words following the murder image of her 16-year-old son Jimmy, which mother do you feel sorry for?

Jimmy, a devout Roman Catholic, was slashed across the neck with a broken glass dish in a bakery in south-east London by a man in his 20s who had unsuccessfully tried to goad him and his 18 year old brother Harry into a fight on Saturday morning.

image Jimmy’s mother said afterwards that she felt only sympathy for her son’s attacker and his parents:

“I don’t feel anger, just sorrow for the parents of our son’s killer. They must be in pain. It’s so painful to know that one of your children has been so cruel, so wicked.”

One can only have the greatest admiration for such dignity and kindness. And her poignant words are very true. But will it make any difference to the killer and his family? Or to others who live their lives by violence?

imageAccidental death is one thing, but a deliberate unprovoked murder on a decent teenager is another.

My sympathies are with the exemplary Mizen family for the loss of their gorgeous son, similar in age to my two boys, who should have been preparing for his GCSEs right now.