Katherine Scouler: Teacher, 53, described as a 'pillar of community' kills herself after being accused of assault for confiscating student's phone
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EDINBURGH, SCOTLAND: A teacher described as a "pillar of the community" reportedly ended her life by suicide just days before she was due to be tried for allegedly assaulting a student while confiscating her mobile phone. Colleagues and locals were shocked upon hearing about the death of 53-year-old Katherine Scouler.
The mother-of-two was reportedly due to appear in court on Thursday, February 16, in light of the classroom incident, during which she tried to take a mobile phone away from a student and accidentally caught her hair in the process. The language teacher's colleagues were reportedly "furious" at an apparent lack of support from her employer, the Scottish Borders Council. "Her sudden death has left us completely devastated," Scouler's family said in a statement, adding, "No words can express the sense of loss we feel about her passing."
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Critically injured
Scouler was critically injured in an early-morning incident in her garden in Hawick, 50 miles south of Edinburgh, on February 4, per the Daily Mail. She was discovered by her husband, Michael, a Church of Scotland minister and NHS chaplain, and was rushed to Borders General Hospital before being transferred to Glasgow Royal Infirmary, where she succumbed to her injuries three days later.
Scouler had been suspended from Hawick High School since October 2022, after a police complaint was filed about the aforementioned incident with the pupil. During an appearance at Jedburgh Sheriff Court on January 30, she denied pulling the girl's hair and "striking her on the head" with her hand. Following her death, the Crown Office confirmed that any active proceedings would come to an end. "We have received a death report in relation to this individual. This brings any active proceedings against them to an end," a spokesman said.
Pillar of the community
Scouler was remembered by locals as a "pillar of the community." She and her husband have two daughters, Jenny, 30, and Heather, 28, who reportedly live abroad. The beloved teacher, of Fenland in Cambridgeshire, met her husband when he was stationed nearby as a soldier with the Royal Highland Fusiliers. She gave a speech to the local voluntary group Bright Eyed Daughters in 2018 when she spoke of Hawick being a "very special part of the world with very special people." She revealed how she met the love of her life in Cambridgeshire and that she had "bagged" her "own Scotsman." According to the Daily Mail, she had been working at Hawick High School since 2015 and even joined the town's Saxhorn Band after learning the trombone.
"We are deeply saddened by the death of Katherine Scouler. Our thoughts are with her family," the Borders Council said in a statement, adding, "Katherine was a valued member of the Hawick High School community. Arrangements are in place to support colleagues or pupils affected by this news." Tory MSP Rachael Hamilton also paid tribute. "My sincere sympathies go out to her family and friends. As the local MSP, I understand the school and the community in Hawick are being supported," she said, adding, "While it is important that a full investigation is carried out into this matter, at this very sad time we must ensure her family and friends have the space to grieve the loss of a loved one."
No suspicious circumstances
A spokesman for the Scottish Ambulance Service said in a statement. "We received a call at 3.50 am on February 4 to attend an incident at an address on the High Street, Hawick," he said, adding, "We dispatched two ambulances and a female patient was transported to the Borders General hospital."
Meanwhile, a Police Scotland spokesman reportedly said, "At around 3.55 am on Saturday, February 4, police attended a concern for a person call at an address on High Street in Hawick. A 53-year-old woman was taken to hospital following the incident. She subsequently died in the hospital on Tuesday, February 7. There are no suspicious circumstances and a report will be submitted to the procurator fiscal."
