What if there was something that we could have done? Making a change can be a positive result from a negative situation. Last October the son of one of our former teachers, 7-year-old Eryk McCall, lost his life during a custody battle after a divorce.

 His father Rodney McCall and Boys Soccer Coach Bryan Thompson decided to do something to prevent such a terrible disaster like this from taking place again.

 “I think it would be a real tragedy to allow this to happen to another child. I urge all of Raider Nation to rally to this cause and help Mr. McCall make a difference,” Thompson said.

 Seniors Alyssa Jennings, Emily Rose and Cassi Springfield are just three of the many students helping to pass a new law.

 “If the bill is passed, Eryk’s Law will state that the child that is being fought for custody will be taken into Child Protective Services while the trial is taking place,” Rose said.

 The students have been working on getting this new law passed since a week after the incident. 

 “We wanted to make sure that this never happened again,” Jennings said.

 The law would say that not all cases would require “Eryk’s Law” to be enacted. It would be the judge’s discretion whether or not the law would be needed for each case.

Currently, the students are trying to convince the state legislators to get on board and agree with this new law they want to create. They are also fundraising to earn money when the state gets on board.

“Basically anything we can do to protect a child who is involved in a compromising custody battle is what we are trying to do,” Springfield said.

 Every student was affected in his or her own way when Eryk’s mother took his life before turning the gun on herself.

 “This whole ordeal has had a huge impact on me,” Jennings said. “Hearing stories like this is always sad, but when you’ve actually had a relationship with the person you’re hearing about on the news, it opens your eyes to a lot, and at first, it killed me.

 Jennings is one of Mr. McCall’s former AP World History students.

 “Eryk’s Law and Mr. McCall’s strength have really had a positive impact on me. They both show me that there is a bigger picture, and I can actually be a part of doing something about it.”