As a member of the Scots Guards destined for Afghanistan, 19-year-old Andrew Gibson was a young man who accepted that his life was in danger.
His loving family also knew the risks involved in his profession as a soldier.
What they did not expect was for him to be killed on a night out in Darlington.
This morning, 17-year-old John Flannigan, from Darlington, was jailed for two and a half years, for killing Andrew with a single punch to the back of his head.
You could be forgiven for wondering if I'd made a mistake with that sentence - but I haven't. Flannigan really was jailed for just two and a half years.
No wonder Andrew's family believe that justice has not been done.
His killer will probably be free before he reaches the age at which Andrew died.
OK, it was not a cold-blooded murder - it was manslaughter. And Flannigan's young age has obviously been taken into account.
But it simply cannot be right.
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