A heartbroken woman who was preparing for her sister's wedding had her whole world shattered with just one devastating phone call. Kaitlyn Booth was getting ready for her sibling's big day when she was told that her boyfriend had "irreversible brain damage" after allegedly being punched on a night out.
The 22-year-old was told that her boyfriend, Jack, was allegedly assaulted and was on a ventilator in hospital. Legal assistant Jack Jermy-Doyle, 25, was rushed to a hospital in Preston by ambulance on August 12, but he sadly died two days later.
As reported by the Mirror, Kaitlyn is now raising awareness of the devastation that issues at the end of a night out can cause. The dental nurse from Burnley, in Lancashire said: “I woke up at about 5:30am on August 12 to start getting ready for my sister's big day and I had lots of notifications saying something had happened to Jack.
“The signal was terrible but I finally managed to get a hold of his sister, Leanne, who told me that doctors were saying Jack had irreversible brain damage. My dad drove me over to Preston hospital and when we arrived, we had to sit in A+E and wait for a nurse to come and take me down.
"The nurse came over and explained the extent of the damage and told us that there was absolutely no way Jack would survive this and it would only be a matter of time before his heart stopped beating. I just remember breaking down but trying so hard not to because in my head there was still hope. I didn’t want to accept it.
"After visiting Jack, me and dad made our way back to the rest of the family to support my sister at her wedding. It was the most difficult thing I’ve ever had to do, trying to smile through such horrific pain.”
In August 2021, Kaitlyn and Jack met on Tinder and they moved into a flat together in Manchester that December. Kaitlyn said: “It was amazing, but we shortly moved back home with our parents as we decided it was far too expensive and we wanted to save up for a mortgage, which was impossible if we were to continue living in Manchester.
“We still spent every moment we could together. I loved being around Jack, he was funny, kind, ambitious, so very friendly and just loved life. He always showed me how much he loved me. If I’d had a hard day at work he would make sure I came home to a home cooked meal and a cocktail.
“On the night he was allegedly punched, he was out with friends but he’d left me a voicemail because I didn’t have a very good signal where I was. It was him telling me how much he loved me and I remember listening to it thinking how sweet it was and I even thought I’m gonna keep that forever should anything ever happen. Little did I know I was going to walk up in the morning and he would be gone.”
Two men in their twenties were arrested on suspicion of Section 18 wounding following the incident - but they were released on police bail while enquiries continued. A spokesperson for Lancashire police said: "Two men - aged 21 and 28 from Preston – previously arrested on suspicion of Section 18 wounding were re-arrested on August 24 on suspicion of murder, assault and Public Order Act offences.
"They have since been released on bail pending further enquiries. Anyone with information which could assist our enquiries should call 101 quoting log 0161 of August 12, 2022."
Kaitlyn says the people who have been arrested are completely unknown to her and Jack. She believes the alleged attack was completely unprovoked and, as the investigation continues, she is trying to keep busy.
She said: “I never stop because as soon as I sit down or if it’s quiet it hits me all over again that I’m never going to see him again and I just can’t bear it. I’m still just devastated and in shock. I question ‘what if’ all the time and think of all these different scenarios.”
On August 14, 2022, Jack was officially pronounced dead and went on to donate his organs that saved four people’s lives. His heart went to someone who was top of the donor list. Kaitlin said: “My dad likes to remind me that Jack's heart still beats for me, which is bittersweet.”
On September 20, 2022, Jack’s funeral was held and local scout groups gathered to form a guard of honour for him. Jack had attended scouts since childhood. His family and Kaitlyn chose to play ‘Before You Go’ by Lewis Capaldi for him. Kaitlyn said: “We’d seen Lewis Capaldi perform in June and it was the last song he played on the stage.
“It really started to sink in at Jack’s funeral that he was gone but I don’t really think I’ve managed my grief at all. I still sleepover at Jack’s mum’s house every week on a Thursday and I wear his clothes to bed.
“It hurts to know that I am never going to see him again. It’s difficult looking into the future because Jack should have been in my future. We were supposed to get married and have children and live a long and happy life together growing old with each other. But it was all taken with one punch.
“I hope that our story will make people think twice before throwing their fists around. It changes people's lives forever and it's us as a family that have to serve the life sentence. What is devastating is that Jack had a twin. Harry, who died in 2019 by suicide. So his mum, Sue and sister, Leanne have lost both of them now.”
On the anniversary of Jack’s alleged attack this year, August 12, 2023, Kaitlyn is competing in a Tough Mudder race in his memory. She added: “This is something that we wanted to do together but sadly never can. My goal is to raise money for the charity One Punch UK but most importantly I want to raise awareness of the severity that one punch can do. So please, if you can’t donate, share and help raise awareness.
“All of this is for Jack, I know he will be cheering me on in the background and I know he will be so proud of me. He was my biggest cheerleader in life and even in death he is still my biggest cheerleader. Everything I do is for Jack, he’s the love of my life and I promise to keep his name and memories alive for as long as I live.”
To donate to Kaitlyn’s fund, click here.
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