BOYS REFUSED COURT ORDER FOR READMISSION TO SCHOOL

A boy who was expelled and his brother who was suspended from school
over an incident in which another pupil was allegedly supplied with
cannabis yesterday lost their High Court application for an injunction
seeking their reinstatement, pending a full court hearing.

But in refusing the injunction, the judge said he was not making any
finding on the conflicting accounts of what had occurred on the night
of February 4 last. Full trial of the action is unlikely for months.

Mr Justice O'Sullivan said that if he were to reinstate the boys to
school and they were to lose their case (at the full trial), damage
would have been done to the authority of the school board faced with
the responsibility of dealing with a threat of drug abuse.

If he refused the injunction and the boys won their case, added the
judge, they would in all probability have had access to an alternative
school. Neither of them was facing watershed examinations this summer.

The judge heard that the older boy, aged 15 - who has been expelled -
had been suspended previously after he admitted providing cannabis for
a joint which was shared among 10 other pupils in an incident last
September.

It was also alleged that the younger boy, aged 12, had smoked cannabis
on that occasion and he, too was suspended, but for a shorter period.
Following the first incident, the older boy had given a written
undertaking to the school that he would not be involved in drug use.

Both boys denied involvement in last month's incident and claimed fair
procedures were not followed by the school in investigating the
incident and taking action against them. The school, in Co Wexford,
claimed it was entitled to act as it did.

Disciplinary action was taken against the two boys after the mother of
a teenage girl complained to gardai when her daughter came home
intoxicated or under the influence of drugs early on February 4.

The court was told the girl had alleged initially she got cannabis
from the 15-year-old but later stated she had received it from the
12-year-old, after approaching him on a school pitch. It was also
stated the girl had initially said she borrowed pounds 60 to buy
cannabis but later admitted stealing it. The board of management
decided unanimously in favour of the expulsion and suspension.

Mr Justice O'Sullivan was asked for a temporary injunction restraining
the boys' expulsion and suspension pending the eventual outcome of the
court proceedings.

Counsel for the boys claimed there was insufficient evidence before
the board to justify its decision to suspend the younger child for two
months and expel his brother.

On the application of Mr Aidan Walsh SC, for the plaintiffs, costs
were reserved.