A CLAIM of a teenage killer who stabbed his teacher to death has told of his pain ten years later.
Will Cornick was just 15 when he used a 34cm blade to ambush his teacher, Ann Maguire, 61, in a horrific classroom attack on April 28, 2014.
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The much-loved Mrs Maguire was a Spanish teacher working at Corpus Christi Catholic College in Leeds for four decades when she was stabbed seven times and had her jugular vein cut in front of horrified pupils.
Cornick’s 2014 trial heard that he planned to murder his teacher and two others the day before the attack.
And on the morning of the murder, he took two knives to school, including one with a 21cm blade, as well as a bottle of Jack Daniels.
Ten years after the brutal murder, former friend Zacc Capitano has revealed how the incident still haunts him and his classmates.
Speaking to The Sun, Zacc, now 25, told how he still remembers “absolutely everything” about the day of the murders – including Will’s final words to him.
He explained: “I used to play cards every morning with Will because he was in my class. We always played together and that particular morning he didn’t want to play cards, which I remember thinking was strange.
“I wondered why – and then he took the iPad out of his bag and started playing games on it.
“That was weird because we weren’t even allowed to use our phones, so for him to pull out an iPad seemed ridiculous.
“I asked him about the iPad and he said, ‘I might need it later.’ Then I asked if we would play cards tomorrow and he said: ‘I won’t be here tomorrow’.
“I didn’t really think about it much. I thought, ‘Oh, maybe he’ll go skiing’ – but he obviously knew in his head what he intended to do that morning and that he wasn’t going back to school after that.”
Zacc and Will then split up – with Zacc going to English class and Will going to Mrs. Maguire’s Spanish class.
After class, the 6-foot-5 Cornick returned to the classroom and stabbed the teacher in the neck and back seven times.
Ms Maguire, who was just 5ft 7in tall, ran out of the room trying to escape. She shouted to a fellow teacher that she had been stabbed.
Another brave member of staff pushed Ms Maguire into a room and blocked the door so Cornick couldn’t enter.
Mrs Maguire collapsed and, despite attempts to resuscitate her, was pronounced dead later that day.
BELOVED TEACHER
Ann Maguire was a Spanish teacher who had worked at Corpus Christi Catholic College in Leeds for four decades.
The 61-year-old was described by her husband Don as a “beautiful, vivacious, caring and generous human being”.
The pair met in 1972, and the couple had daughters Emma and Kerry.
Ann was described by one of her students as “very caring…she kind of couldn’t do enough for people, she was really lovely to everyone.”
Others said the mother of two genuinely wanted her students to succeed.
A memorial was held for her on September 29, 2014, with a Ann Maguire Arts Education Fund established in her name.
It remains unclear why Cornick so irrationally hated the kind-hearted Mrs Maguire – who was due to retire that summer after a 40-year career.
Cornick, who was never in trouble with the police, was a good student and had a 100% attendance record.
Zacc says he was aware of Cornick’s dislike for Ann because he had spoken openly about it, but thought it was “a normal dislike for a teacher.”
He explained: “I don’t think I ever came to terms with it – I just got used to it. I knew Mrs. Maguire very well. She taught most of my family – including my parents.
“She was very sweet. She was fair but strict. She was one of those teachers who wouldn’t let you not do your homework – but it was obviously for our own good.
“I mean, everyone doesn’t like a certain teacher when they’re young. When you’re young, you might say ‘oh, I can’t stand that teacher’. Or even say ‘I wish they were dead’. But you never think anyone would do that.
Who is William Cornick?
William Cornick was born on June 26, 1998.
While his parents were separated, Cornick was reportedly raised in a supportive and loving environment.
In court, Cornick was described as apparently a “reserved but friendly, enthusiastic and zealous” student at Corpus Christi Catholic College in Leeds.
He was diagnosed with diabetes in 2010, meaning he would not be able to fulfill his dream of going into the army.
Two months before his 16th birthday, his “completely irrational” feelings of anger toward his Spanish teacher Ann Maguire began to intensify, his murder trial heard.
Cornick told other students he wanted to kill Ms Maguire after she gave him detention and told him he could not give up Spanish, a later inquest was told.
Before the murder, he wrote to a friend telling him: “The only absolute piece of shit that deserves more than death, more than pain, more than torture, and more than anything we can understand.”
Psychologists described Cornick as having “a great lack of empathy for the victim and a degree of callousness rarely seen in clinical practice.”
A consultant forensic child and adolescent psychiatrist said he could not rule out the possibility of the teenager killing again.
“It was so blasphemous what he did. He just went in there and stabbed her multiple times and left like it was nothing. It wasn’t provoked. He had a plan and knew what he was going to do. It’s barbaric.”
Despite Zacc’s year having to take exams just a month later – their class achieved the best results.
He explained: “It’s a huge credit to the school. Nobody knows how to deal with this kind of thing.
“A lot of people criticized the school after what happened, but they were brilliant. They provided all the support we needed.
“They did everything they could in such a terrible situation and we still got the best results. We said we did it for Mrs Maguire.”
Cornick was sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum of 20 years at Leeds Crown Court on 3 November 2014.
In 2015, the teenager lost an appeal against his sentence.
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This story originally appeared on The-sun.com read the full story
