WESTERN BUREAU — Public Defender Howard Hamilton says his offer to help the 10 boys expelled from the Frome Technical High School for gang violence last month is still on the table and he has urged them to take advantage of it.

Hamilton told the Observer that about two weeks ago a parent of one of the boys called his office and indicated an interest in taking up the offer, even while offering to “round up” some other parents.

However, that parent, who Hamilton believes may have been affected by the recent heavy rains, has not got back to him.

“One father called in and promised to round up the others. The rains intervened and they didn’t come in … I haven’t heard from him since,” he said.

“I am asking the parent that contacted me, … if he’s still interested my office is still available.”

He added that should they choose to take up his offer he would arrange to have one of his investigators visit them rather than have them go into his office, as he has indicated before.

At the same time, he said that his offer to have the boys undergo psychiatric evaluation and counselling to find the cause of their actions and prevent a repetition was not directly linked to his duties as public defender but had stemmed from his concern as a public figure.

“I am only interested in them as individuals who may just be cast out of the school system and, therefore, fall under the wrong influence… It is not a question of being in my role as public defender. This is as a concerned citizen,” he said.

“I am concerned about them because I know from my experience that the fact that a person has been expelled from school, it can affect them one way (or other). It can make them plummet downhill or it can goad them on to greater heights… I don’t know what help I will be able to give them … but I am just anxious to know that they continue with their lives and don’t just fall.”

He added that it was his view that the school board had acted correctly but said people deserved a second chance.

“I am not taking their side that they were right. That is not the point I am making. I think they were wrong and the school was perfectly entitled to do what they did,” Hamilton said. “But now that they are out of the school system I don’t just want them to fall under the wrong influence … everybody who has run afoul of the law is deserving of a chance to better themselves.”

The boys were initially put on a 10-day suspension following their involvement in two days of gang fighting at the school that forced the closure of classes on both days and left three students injured.

Eight of the 10 boys who turned themselves over after the incident were slapped with charges of unlawful conduct, possession of offensive weapons and unlawful wounding.

Two other boys have still have not been located and the case is to be brought back before the court on July 3.

Meanwhile, the public defender said he would utilise the resources of his office only to obtain information on the boys and their families.

“What I will be utilising the service of my office is to obtain the information. After that, I will be taking it on in another capacity because I wear many hats. I am involved with street children. I am involved with the possibility programme,” he said.

“The reason I would send the investigators down is as a convenience to them (the boys and their parents) because my investigators go out from time-to-time to various parts of the island. This would have been just to extend a convenience to them and not to involve the office as such. As they would be there to get their side of the story and find out what is happening with them and get back to me.”