Bloxwich attack victim Kearon McNichol fights for life

A teenager was fighting for his life today following a mass brawl in a street in Bloxwich.

Shocked families were woken at 3am to a group of up to 30 men and women shouting screaming in Ryle Street, Blakenall Heath.

The fight left 18-year-old Kearon McNichol in a critical condition at Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham.

Robert Bagnall, aged 24, of nearby Wye Road was remanded in custody today after being charged with grevious bodily harm with intent.

Kearon's devastated mother Caroline, 36, of Newhome Way, Blakenall, said doctors had told her to prepare for the worst.

She said: "It's just not sunk in, it's heart-breaking. He could be paralysed, or he could never wake up.

"You aren't supposed to even be thinking about burying your own child, I can't describe it."

She said former Shelfield Academy student Kearon had undergone a five-hour operation to relieve the swelling from his brain, and doctors had induced him into a coma.

Crowds of people watched as violence flared at 2.50am on Saturday. Claire Hanley, aged 37, said her daughter, Karla, 18, had been seeing the victim for a few months.

She said: "She is distraught. He is a lovely lad, quite quiet."

Following the fight, the scene was sealed off by police and examined by forensic experts. Officers made door-to-door inquiries and a finger-tip search of the area.

Patricia Bridges, 63, also of Ryle Street, said Kearon was well known.

She said: "You couldn't wish for a nicer person. After my son passed away two and a half years ago, he used to talk to me and ask me if I was all right."

Bagnall appeared at Walsall Magistrates Court today and will appear next at Wolverhampton Crown Court.

Jaspreet Jagdev, spokeswoman for West Midlands Police, appealed for witnesses to call Bloxwich Police on 0345 113 5000 ext 78896200.