'I let him down': Mother of student who killed himself after his brother died in infamous one-punch attack reveals her 'greatest regret'
- The parents of a teenager who killed himself have spoken out about his suicide
- Stuart Kelly took his life after his brother Thomas died in a one punch attack
- His parents regret not 'reading this signs' leading up to the suicide
- They believe Stuart was bullied at university for being a lockout law advocate
The parents of Stuart Kelly, who took his own life after his brother Thomas was killed in a one-punch attack which sparked NSW's contentious lockout laws, have revealed their 'greatest regret'.
Ralph Kelly, 59 and wife Kathy, 56, reflected on the death of their sons in an interview with Women's Weekly.
They said the death of Thomas, who as fatally coward-punched by Kieran Loveridge, 19, in Sydney's Kings Cross seven years ago, had a devastating effect on Stuart.
'It's clear to us now that Stuart was even more deeply affected than we knew,' Mr Kelly said.
'That is our greatest regret, that we didn't recognise the signs.
'In hindsight we can say that there were signs but we simply didn't see them for what they truly were.'
The parents of student Stuart Kelly (pictured), 18, who took his own life after his brother Thomas, also 18, was fatally coward punched have revealed their 'greatest regret'
Ralph and Kathy Kelly (pictured), 59, and 56, lost two sons in four years. They now have one surviving child Madeleine who is 23
Mrs Kelly felt she 'let her son down' and shared her husband's regrets.
'I don't think I experienced the same grief, the same intense feeling of grief, when Stuart died,' Mrs Kelly said.
'It took me a while to realise how I felt and for me to begin the grieving process again.
'Perhaps I let him down, but I have tried to make up for that since.'
The parents have one remaining child, Madeleine, 23, who was motivated to study law after Thomas' killer was given a lenient sentence.
Stuart and Thomas Kelly would be 21 and 25 respectively today if not for their untimely deaths.
Stuart Kelly an advocate of lockout laws following Thomas's death, which his parents believe he was bullied for at the University of Sydney
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Stuart and Thomas Kelly (middle and right, respectively) would be 21 years old and 25 years old today, respectively, if not for their deaths. They are pictured with sister Madeleine (left)
Stuart was 18 when his body was found in his car in Sydney's northern beaches after he drove there in the early hours of July 25, 2015.
He was an advocate of the lockout laws following Thomas' death, and his parents believe that stance saw him bullied at the University of Sydney.
His parents found him crying when they picked him up after spending one night at the university's St Paul's residential college just weeks before his death.
'I believe that he was assaulted, possibly sexually, this was something Stuart would never have recovered from,' Kathy Kelly said to the Sydney Morning Herald.
Thomas was killed in a one-punch attack by Kieran Loveridge, 19, in Sydney's infamous Kings Cross suburb on July 7, 2012
Loveridge (pictured) is serving 14 years without parole with a minimum non-parole period of 10 years in prison for manslaughter and assault convictions
Thomas was also 18 when he died after being attacked by Loveridge, 19, in Sydney's Kings Cross on July 7, 2012.
Loveridge was initially sentenced to just six years in jail for manslaughter plus another 18 months for other assaults.
His sentence was extended to 14 years with a minimum non-parole period of 10 years after an appeal by the New South Wales Director of Public Prosecutions.
The Thomas Kelly Youth Foundation was created by his parents to campaign for stricter alcohol laws and set up first aid points around the Sydney CBD to help people suffering from intoxication.
Mrs Kelly told Women's Weekly they felt 'powerless' when they lost their two sons but the foundation was their 'way of taking back control'.
The foundation's name will be changed to Stay Kind from July.
The parents told Women's Weekly they felt 'powerless' when they lost their two sons but the Thomas Kelly Youth Foundation was their 'way of taking back control'
