A cruel irony

The irony of Nathaniel Turner’s short life is almost too much to bear.

His seven years on this earth were spent in tumult; rather than being raised in a traditional household, he lived with his maternal grandmother in Eufaula with a father who questioned his own paternity.

Nathaniel was resilient; despite what his teacher, Kelly Whitehead, called “ a rough background,” the youngster became one of the teacher’s favorite pupils and an all-A achiever.

He seemed to have everything going for him, and when his father turned up in Eufaula saying the court had granted him custody that would allow Nathaniel to stay with him in Massachusetts for several weeks, he must certainly have believed his dad would be returning to his life.

Nathaniel wound up in a coma — clinically dead — after an incident in which police say the youngster’s father, Leslie G. Schuler, slammed his head into the wall hard enough to leave a dent. The family decided to discontinue life support, and young Nathaniel died.

His assault occurred on Father’s Day.

Schuler faces a murder charge; his live-in girlfriend is also jailed on assault charges. If they’re guilty of this monstrous act, there is nothing the state of Massachusetts can do to them that would be just punishment.

Parents are supposed to nurture their children. Abuse — of any sort — must not be tolerated.