AND JUSTICE FOR ALL? NO, SON, JUSTICE FOR SOME

Colleague Tim Petruk received a pretty nasty letter recently, berating
him for a court story he wrote on a man accused of threatening some
students.

It's unfortunate the letter writer didn't realize Petruk was just
reporting what happened in court.

I have to admit, though, I felt for the writer.

I share the outrage the letter writer felt when hearing these young
men testify they felt threatened by the dad who confronted them,
accusing them of bullying his son.

I was equally furious when I heard these young men, just hours after
the incident, talk about how they felt the dad was deliberating
driving his vehicle at them as they stood at a bus stop, about how
frightened they were when the vehicle came up over the curb.

I believe them, but I have some advantages over the judicial system
that has acquitted this dad.

First, I know these kids.

I've watched them grow from youngsters into fine teenagers who have
themselves been the brunt of bullying because they attend Beattie
School of the Arts.

Apparently, in some minds, that makes them gay and, hence, victims of
all kinds of bullying -- to the point the police have been called on at
least two occasions.

I believe them because I saw the fear in their eyes at the
time.

I listened to my own son, one of their friends who wasn't at the bus
stop but on his way there, talk about how angry they were to be
accused of bullying this man's young son. I believe them because I'm a
mom.

And, this is where the tough life lesson comes in. I just believe
them.

The judge, however, had to apply other criteria. He had to consider
testimony, believability, credibility, likelihood of truth, possible
doubt -- all those questions I don't have to think about because, in my
heart, I believe these teenagers.

So, now comes the need to explain why the result isn't what they had
expected would happen.

It's the justice versus what-we-believe-should-happen talk -- and
that's been made a bit harder by another reality some of these kids
witnessed earlier this week when two police cruisers rolled up outside
their school and a handful of RCMP officers waded into a crowd of
teens gathered on private property.

A neighbour had called the police, claiming the teens were smoking
pot.

These officers approached what school district officials say was about
two dozen teens and proceeded to search some.

That led to some backtalk from some of these kids and the end result
was two teens busted for having drugs or drug paraphernalia and two
more arrested for obstruction.

Where's the fairness, my son asked?

Tough question to answer.

Why are police officers allowed to swear at teens, my son asked, yet
teens get arrested if they swear at a police officer?

Another tough question and, frankly, I have no answer expect to say
police officers expect respect.

Giving it appears to be another matter for some of
them.

The school district will "deal with" the quartet of students arrested,
according to superintendent Terry Sullivan. I figure that's a
euphemism for suspension, a belief my son shares.

Here's where the hardest question comes into play: Why does the court
system let one person walk and yet these kids may be punished ?

Because that's the way the world works is the obvious answer, albeit
one that is hard for many to swallow.

All these teens have learned some life lesson now; there are different
rules depending on who is making the call.

That's called life -- and nobody said it would always be
fair.

But, for those young men who went into that courtroom to testify or to
support each other, know this: I believe you, your parents believe you
and, whether you accept it or not right now, you did the right thing.