A Georgia teenager who was charged in a high school teacher's death after a prank gone wrong says he plans to live out the rest of his life in the teacher's honor.
Jayden Ryan Wallace was charged with first-degree vehicular homicide after he ran over North Hall High School teacher Jason Hughes outside Hughes' home Friday night. Hughes' family described the situation as an accident.
Wallace and four other people threw toilet paper over the trees outside Hughes' home when Hughes, 40, left the house and slipped in the road, the Hall County Sheriff's Office said.
“As Wallace began driving his pickup truck on North Gate Drive, Hughes tripped and fell into the road and was run over by the vehicle,” the sheriff’s office said.
The students, who were in two vehicles, stopped to help Hughes, a math teacher, but he died later at a hospital.
Wallace's attorney told NBC affiliate WXIA of Atlanta in a statement on behalf of his parents that they were in "deep remorse and grieving over such a tremendous loss."
"Jason Hughes meant the world to our son, Jayden," it said. "He took the time to invest in Jay and poured his love into him, making a lasting impact."
Wallace also apologized to the Hughes family in a statement released through the attorney.
"I pledge to live out the remainder of my life in a manner that honors the memory of Coach Hughes by exemplifying Christ," Wallace said. "He will never be forgotten.”
Hughes' family said in a statement Monday that Hughes was aware that the students were coming to pull a prank on him and “was excited and waiting to catch them in the act.” The family called for the charges to be dropped against all five teenagers, all of whom are 18 years old.
"Our family is determined to prevent a separate tragedy from occurring, ruining the lives of these students," the statement said. "This would be counter to Jason’s lifelong dedication of investing in the lives of these children."
Wallace is charged with reckless driving, criminal trespass and littering in addition to vehicular homicide. The four other teens were also charged with criminal trespass and littering.
More than 3,000 people have signed a Change.org petition calling for the charges to be dropped. The petition said justice "can also include compassion, proportionality, and a commitment to healing rather than compounding loss."
Many who left comments on the petition emphasized that Hughes' death did not come from a malicious act and that the teenagers will have to live with his death for the rest of their lives.
"A young person should not have their entire future defined by something that was clearly never intended to cause harm. Justice should always consider intent and context," a commenter named Anna wrote.
Another person who identified as Chuck on the site wrote that there would be "no benefit for anyone to punish these students for something that has been happening for decades in this area," referring to the tradition of high school upperclassmen's pulling pranks before graduating.
Hall County District Attorney Lee Darragh did not immediately respond to a about whether his office was considering dropping the case.
Darragh told TMZ on Wednesday that it was under consideration and would be decided after a complete review of the law enforcement investigation. He told NBC News on Monday that it was early in the process and that he would not comment until the case is closed.
