School director, handyman and prevention adviser guilty of death ‘super jack’ (11), who buried under collapsed wall (Ekeren)

The court finds that the former director is jointly responsible for the death of Jack, because she had had a wall built on the playground without following the normal procedures. In addition to the director, the handyman and the prevention manager of the school were also found guilty.

Read too. Four school employees before judge after death of ‘Super Jack’ (11): « Hopefully everyone will be honest »

Those three school managers not only made mistakes when building the wall, they also left afterwards to check the stability of the wall. They also left out to inform the external prevention advisor of the construction of the wall. The external prevention advisor, who was also in the case on the Kloeingsbank, was for that reason acquitted.

The Antwerp public prosecutor had had a thorough investigation carried out into the way in which the wall had been created on the playground of the Sint-Vincent School. That research not only happened that there was sinning against the normal procedures, the handyman who had raised the wall with a few volunteers also turned out to be a fatal construction errors. The handyman, who is an independent contractor in a secondary occupation, had erected the wall from hollow concrete bricks, without applying a sufficiently sturdy foundation. In addition, the man had applied a (useless) moisture -resistant foil, which turned out to be detrimental to the stability of the wall.

Permit

In addition, it came to light that the man had applied concrete irons in the wall for reinforcement, but those concrete irons were not found to be anchored in the foundation. The handyman admitted to court that he didn’t really know how such a wall should be built. He also admitted that he had not worked on the basis of a building plan, but simply had worked the instructions of the former school director. Master Frederic Lenders, the counsel for the parents of Jack Horions, summarized it as follows.

« During the construction, one blunder after the other was piled up, » said Lenders, who was particularly hard for the former director. « The school group was not aware of the project. The director not only ignored the rules of her own school community, she also deliberately chose not to respect the law by not applying for an urban development permit. »

Read too. Family and friends say goodbye to Jack (11): « It was an honor to have you in our lives »

The Public Prosecution Service demanded the suspension of punishment during the trial. The prosecutor of the public prosecutor thought that fatal mistakes had been made, but that a punishment of the defendant was not necessary. « These people are not criminals, » said the prosecutor. « They also sympathized with the death of Jack. »

Take

The correctional court largely follows the Public Prosecution Service. The judges are particularly strict for former school director. She has failed to follow the advice to appoint a recognized contractor for the works. In addition, the court ruled that she left to find out if the construction of the wall was subject to a permit. But she did not take any action after questions were asked from the parents and teachers with the questionable stability of the wall.

And finally she did not take measures to ensure that the wall could not be used by the children. The director also failed to inform her successor.

The court was also strict for the secretarial employee, and also internal prevention advisor. She should have informed the external prevention service, which is responsible for the annual control of the playground, of the new wall that was built on the playground. According to the court, that error is directly related to the death of Jack Horions.

Suspension

Finally, the handyman of the school is also found guilty. He not only made concept errors in the construction of the wall, he took no action afterwards to check whether the wall was stable enough. That mistake also led to the death of Jack.

Read too. Jack (11) died after accident with wall in primary school in Ekeren: « He fought like a lion, until the end »

The court states that the mistakes of the school manager have led to the involuntary death of Jack Horions. «  » That caused an unreal loss for the parents, sisters, family and friends, « said the court. « The fact that he died in the playground, where Jack could feel safe, makes it extra painful. »

The court says he does not doubt that the three defendants are driven people from education. « Jack’s death has also had a major impact on them. For that reason, the court does not impose a punishment and the court grants them the favor of the suspension of punishment. »