The family of maths teacher Jason Hughes have spoken out for the first time since his tragic death, which came as a result of a ‘harmless’ high school prank.Last week on Thursday (5 March), five teenagers decided to take part in the annual junior/senior prank war and drape toilet paper across the trees in front of Hughes’ home in Gainesville, Georgia, USA.Sadly, due to the rainy conditions, the ground outside was slick and Hughes tripped and fell into the road when he went to confront the group, as they tried to speed off in cars.
He was then accidentally run over by 18-year-old Jayden Ryan Wallace in his pick-up truck, who then hopped out with two other teens and tried to provide aid to the teacher until first responders arrived on the scene.Sadly, Hughes, 40, would die in hospital, leaving behind a wife and two young sons, as a result of the intended good-natured prank.And now, in a statement, his wife Laura said that her husband and the students involved loved one another, highlighting that he ‘was excited’ by the prank and wanted to ‘catch them in the act’.The Hall County School District issued a warning to parents on Facebook about pranks around spring prom season going ‘too far’ on 5 March, days before Hughes’ death.It read in part: “In previous years, some pranks during prom season – sometimes referred to as Junior/Senior Wars – have gone too far, resulting in damage to property.