Juvenile Detention

By: Rick Masters
(© 2015-2017 by the author)

The author retains all rights. No reproductions are allowed without the author's consent. Comments are appreciated at...

masters@tickiestories.us

Chapter 68
The Conclusion (Almost)

As Sam's guardian, Karl approached Simon's school and confirmed places for both Sam and Josh to start the next term. The head teacher asked that both boys be brought in one day during the school holidays to complete some placement tests. This made Sam start to worry, as he had never been to school in his memory and had really only just begun reading and writing. Both Simon and Josh assured him that they would help him at home and get him as ready as they could for school. Simon even phoned the head to get permission to come to the school on the same day to show the two around and help them get acquainted with the layout. The head agreed, pleased to see the change in Simon.

When the day came they were met by the head teacher, who greeted Simon first, then correctly guessed which was Josh and which was Sam. He explained that they would complete their papers in different rooms to ensure they were getting a true picture of each individual's status. "I know that Sam has not had any real schooling, and you taught him to read and write in what has been described by our colleagues at the Academy as record time, but we must have a true picture of where Sam is to know how we can best help him. Also we want you, Josh, to be able to concentrate on your work so that we get a true picture of where you are at too."

Both boys said that they understood, and the head continued, "Sam, you will go with Mrs. Gladstone, who will take you to a classroom and go through your papers with you. Mrs. Gladstone is the head of our Humanities program here and will be assessing you with verbal and written work. Josh, Mr. Shelley is the head of our Maths program and will be carrying out your assessment, which will be mostly written. We do have records from your old school as well as the Academy. Simon, you and I are going to have a little chat while this is going on, then you will probably have to kick your heels for a bit until they are ready for you to give them the grand tour."

The three boys headed off in their different directions. The head teacher asked Simon how he felt about the reaction he might get when the school learns that he is friends with two boys who have been in jail. Simon told the head that the rest of the school could shun him if they wanted, but he would not give up his friendship with either of the two. He also told the head that already there was another boy, Godfrey, who was friends with them too.

"And are all four of you gay?" the head asked.

Simon was shocked into silence for a bit. Realizing that the head must have some idea about the truth, he said, "I don't think any of us know for sure, but not entirely straight, anyway."

"Thank you for your honesty. That information will not be released from this office, not even to your teachers. If you want them to know, you will have to tell them. Make sure the other three know this too. My advice would be for all of you to at least act straight while at school. Your peers can be awfully cruel at times, and this is the sort of information they will be very happy to use in the wrong way."

"I think we all know that and understand the consequences."

"I am sure you do." The head then said that the staff were all remarking on the change in Simon and asked if he could explain it.

"Simple. Josh Tolmers. You will see and understand when he starts here. Believe me, he will change this school for the better."

"From what I have heard, you could be right. I do believe you. Now, I don't know how much longer the other two will be. If you go to the receptionist she will get you a cup of tea or coffee out of the staff room and then you can wait in the reception area for your two friends. I must get on with my other work now. Thank you for having this chat. One last thing. If you find that you need to talk to someone about how the rest of the school are reacting, just come in and tell the receptionist you need an appointment to see me."

Simon thanked him and left the office feeling quite buoyed up. The head had treated him kindly and maturely rather than as a little kid in need of some guiding discipline. Simon got his cup of tea and was sipping at it when Josh was brought back. They had to wait about half an hour more for Sam to join them, at which point Simon began the school tour. Simon's tour showed the other two that he actually had quite a pride in his school. He was glad to be able to talk about things in a positive way, which he would have been reluctant to do if he were talking to his other classmates, who all put on an act of dislike for the school or for schooling in general. They had been told to report back to the reception when the tour was over. When they did the receptionist asked them to wait a bit and then showed them through to the head's office. The head was flanked by Mr. Shelley and Mrs. Gladstone.

"We will not keep you long. I thought you might like to know what we see initially from the assessments today. Josh, you will have no problem. You clearly have a little bit to catch up on, but we believe you are more than capable of doing that and should be up to speed with the rest of your year by the end of the first term. Sam, I am afraid you have a much harder time ahead of you. Because of your lack of formal education you have missed a lot of the fundamentals. Mrs. Gladstone assures me that you are very bright and quite capable of catching up, but it will take longer than one term. The advantage you have is that there are two others here who can help you to get up to the same standard as your peers. Simon and Josh, since the three of you live together, I hope you will be willing to help Sam. Sam, it is not going to be easy for you. Your classmates will pick up on your short-comings and will try to take advantage of you, and you will not have Josh or Simon in the class to help you. If you need my help, my intervention, just come to reception and tell the receptionist that you need an appointment to see me. Your teachers will be told of your situation and will help you as much as they can, so don't be afraid to ask them. You might also find a need for some extra tuition; if so, we will arrange it for you. All I ask of the three of you is that you don't let us down. Work with us and we will work with you. Now, unless you have any questions, you are free to go."

The three teens thanked the three staff members and left. They planned to walk into town and go to an afternoon movie, then meet Karl to get a lift home. But as they left Simon took out his phone to take it off of silent mode. After a quick look he called his father's number. After a short conversation he told the other two that they needed to get to David Groggen's office.

Josh confidently led the way. As they stepped into the reception area Josh was greeted, and they were told David would be out to see them soon. They had hardly got seated when the receptionist asked them to go through to his office. Again Josh led the way. When they reached the office, Karl was there already.

David got right down to business. "Firstly, Josh, the IPCC have completed their investigation and have made some recommendations to the Chief Constable, who will be making an announcement tonight. I can tell you officially that the division will accept responsibility for failing to investigate your case and will issue an unreserved apology. The Chief Constable will be visiting you at home this evening before the news breaks. There will be reporters and cameras, and you will be asked to give a statement. I would like to suggest that I give that statement on your behalf. Here is a transcript of what I suggest we say." David handed a sheet of paper over to Josh. "That is not all the news. The judicial inquiry into your defense lawyer and judge's actions will be publishing their findings tomorrow. This will bring a further barrage from the media, and I suggest you again let me do the talking. This inquiry will result in some really hard hitting headlines, because both of those guys are going to be disbarred, with the judge disbarred for life. And all these findings and results are very good news for you, Josh, because you are looking at a six figure settlement at least, and possibly more."

There was a short silence while Josh read through David's suggested statement. Looking up he nodded and said, "I would like this statement to also give my thanks to Karl, Esther and Simon for helping me, please."

"Karl, how do you feel about that? It is undoubtedly going to be reported that he is living with you, so it might be a good thing that it is acknowledged publicly before something more sinister is read into it. Especially as you also have Sam under your care now."

"I'm okay with that, but please keep it fairly low key. We are not doing this for praise or glory, you know."

"We all know that, but I want the public to know that I am appreciative of the help I have received to get justice." After a short pause Josh asked, "Did you say six figures? Does that mean thousands or is it six figures before the decimal point?"

"I cannot see it being less than three quarters of a million, maybe quite a bit more, especially with the injury you received while being held illegally."

"Wow, I didn't realise we were talking that much!"

Before David could say anything more his telephone rang. Shortly the receptionist said over the desk speaker, "Sorry, sir, but I believe you should take this call now."

David picked up the phone and introduced himself to the person on the other end. He listened for a bit and then told the person that he had Mr. Carruthers with him and would get back to him shortly. Placing the phone back in the cradle he looked at Sam and said, "It all comes at once. They have released your mother's body and would like to know what is to happen with her."

"I think she should be cremated and her ashes scattered. What I have of her is in my head and I have no need for anything else."

"Do you want some sort of a service for her cremation?" Karl asked.

"I don't know. She never went to church, so there is no need to have a vicar. He can't do anything for her now. No, just do it and throw the ashes somewhere. Maybe in a garden or something, because she did enjoy flowers."

"Do you want to see her again before it is done? If not, I can make all the arrangements. Unless you want to be there, I can let you know when it is all over."

"No, I don't want to see her again. She is not going to be any more dead than the last time. Please just do it all."

"When I get this big settlement I will pay for it, whatever it costs," Josh said and pulled Sam in tight. Sam just looked at Josh as the tears flowed down both their faces.

That evening there were very mixed feelings around the dinner table. Their tea was later than usual because of the visit from the Chief Constable and all the media. David had rewritten the statement to include Josh's thanks to the Silveys and others who had helped him to get justice. The next day as the news broke about the judge and lawyer being disbarred, Josh could not get out of the house without being swamped by media people. Eventually Esther called David, who in turn called the Chief Constable, and soon there was a police cordon keeping the media at a suitable distance.

After a few days, when the news hounds stopped baying at the Silveys' front door, all those living there were able to get back to some semblance of a normal life. But with Sam attending school for the first time at age fifteen, Josh trying to catch up in school while waiting to hear what sort of compensation he would receive, and Simon adjusting to being gay and in love, "normal" is perhaps a bit of a stretch.

About two months after the reports from the IPCC and the Judicial review, Josh received a call from David Groggen advising him that a date had been set for the compensation hearing. The courts had agreed to combine all the cases so that Josh would not have to attend several hearings.

David explained the proceedings, then said, "Actually it will all be relatively simple, as there are parameters laid down for what sort of compensation can be awarded for the different claims we are making."

Although David had advised Josh's mother and stepfather of the hearings, neither showed up. However, the press box was filled to the rafters, and Josh realized his compensation would be a matter of public knowledge, possibly even before he got home.

As the claimant's representative, David spoke first. In his opening statement he expressed how a combination of errors, omissions and failure in duty had led to an innocent minor being treated in a manner that was unforgivable. He emphasized how Josh had not even been given water to drink from the time he was removed from the cell to be taken to court until he was in the vehicle transporting him to his illegal incarceration. He described the attack on Josh and the injuries he sustained. In all he spoke for over half an hour, fleshing out the injustices and losses that had occurred as a result of the string of failures on the part of several different authorities. He implored the judges on the panel not to forget the age of the claimant and how his life would forever be affected by what had been done to him.

When it came to the turn of the defense, all four legal representatives had put forward what they wanted to say in less than half an hour; they had no real defense to offer. The IPCC's investigation had put the blame completely on the police and the Chief Constable's public unreserved apology had crowned that. The Judicial review disbarring both the judge and the defense lawyer had taken away any form of defense they might have tried to offer, and the evidence given concerning the assault on Josh in the Academy had shown he had not provoked the attack.

There were three judges sitting on the panel. The hearing was adjourned for one hour to allow the three to deliberate. When they returned to the court the lead judge began to give their ruling. "On the charge of wrongful arrest and failure to carry out a simple investigation this court awards compensation to Mr. Joshua Tolmers in the sum of £10 000.00.

"On the charge of wrongful imprisonment and the failure of the defense to appeal the sentence this court awards compensation in the sum of £1 250 000.00. Please accept this court's sincere apology for the failure of officers of the court to ensure justice was done. They are already paying the penalty for that failure.

"For the claim concerning the assault and injuries sustained whilst wrongfully incarcerated this court awards compensation in the sum of £500 000.00.

"This court understands that your lawyer has agreed to act as trustee for these awards until you reach the age of majority. Do you agree to this, Mr. Tolmers?"

Josh stood and told the Judge that he agreed to have David Groggen be his trustee and thanked the court. Following that the Judge ordered that the monies be paid into the trust account within twenty eight days, and then ended the court session.

On their way out of the court house David said, "You got nearly half a million more than I expected. I think the judges were embarrassed that they were ruling against one of their own and sweetened the pot a bit because of that."

David was very strict with managing the money for Josh and invested most of it to gain high interest while he had charge of it. Of course Josh got to use some of it. Having kept records, he was pleased to ask David to arrange a cheque to repay Karl and Esther. He also asked David to put some of the money into a fund to make sure that Sam could go to university and not have a debt at the end of it. Josh had planned to let Sam know about it on Sam's eighteenth birthday, but after discussing his plans with David he decided to do it a year sooner. He would have found it hard to keep it quiet for so long, because he shared everything with Sam, and David mentioned that Sam might not apply to his preferred university if he didn't know he would be able to pay for it.

The level of compensation awarded meant that Josh was probably the richest pupil in his school and although, thanks to the various media reports, many in the school knew this, there was no change in Josh and how he interacted with his fellow pupils and friends. It was not long before most of them forgot that Josh had all this money sitting in trust for him when he turned eighteen. And of course that was when he left school and went to university.

Sam had just one year to get all his studying in to write his GCSE (General Certificate of Secondary Education) exams but with a lot of help from Josh, Simon and Godfrey, and an awful lot of hard work by Sam, he was ready. The day the results came out, the four of them went with Sam to see how he had done.

All those from the school who had written their GCSEs were gathered in the school hall. Some like Sam had friends with them. The Head Teacher walked in and up the stairs to the stage, where he took his place beside a table on which was a large box. Each student's results were in an envelope with the student's name on the outside. They were in alphabetical order of their surnames, so Sam should not have had long to wait, but the Head had made a slight change this time.

"I am sure you are all aware that it is customary to call students forward in alphabetical order, but this year there has been something rather special in our school. We had a young man join us who had not had the same opportunities to learn as the rest of us. But he has some very good friends and a strong determination that has seen an achievement that is well beyond what was expected. I know that many of you have worked very hard to get the results you wanted and many of you have succeeded. I say to you all, very well done! But now not only did this man join us, but one of his friends, who had been dealt a grave injustice, joined us too, and I am pleased to see he is here today supporting his friend still. When these two first arrived at the school and rumours started to fly there were some very nasty things said about and to both of them. But they took it and showed you all that they were just people, no better and no worse than any other of you, and in a very short time, I am pleased to say, most of you accepted them and befriended them. Give yourselves a pat on the back for that because that is what this school is all about. Mr. Tolmers, would you be kind enough to join me here on the platform, please?"

Josh looked at Sam and then the other two, who all nodded their heads, so Josh walked up to the stage and climbed the stairs, looking a bit bewildered.

The head leaned over the box on the table and pulled out the envelope that was at the front of the box. He handed it to Josh and then spoke again, "I know that Mr. Tolmers has played a huge part in helping Mr. Carruthers to achieve the results that are concealed inside this envelope and the staff all felt that it would be fitting for Mr. Carruthers to be presented with his results by the one who has helped him to achieve a remarkable standard. Samuel Carruthers, please come up here and receive your results."

Simon and Godfrey gave Sam a little nudge to get him moving, and he walked up to join Josh on the stage. Josh put out his hand and shook Sam's before handing over the still sealed envelope.

"Mr. Carruthers, I would like to ask a favour from you. You are fully at liberty to refuse this request. We normally do not advertise a student's results, but if you are willing I would like you to open this envelope and read out your results, please," the head said.

Having not had any experience of this sort of thing before, Sam was a bit bewildered and wondered what he should do. Josh whispered to him that he could pull the results out and look at them first and then decide if he wanted to share them. Sam opened the envelope and pulled out a stiff sheet of A4 sized paper. He scanned down through the heading and his name and then saw the list of the seven subjects he had sat, with his score for each subject. Josh was looking over his shoulder, and as he quickly read down the list his eyes grew larger and his smile grew broader. Sam's hand began to shake. Before he could do or say anything he handed the paper to Josh and placed both his hands on the table for support, as he felt a bit faint.

"You tell them," Sam suggested to Josh.

Josh held up the paper, looked at the head, who nodded his approval, and said, "Sam has got a B for history, four A's and two A*'s." Then he put the paper down and pulled Sam into a hug. "Well done! That is fantastic, almost unbelievable!"

"There is no error there. Well done young man. You will go far in this world." The head shook Sam's hand and then started to clap which encouraged the rest of the hall to applaud Sam, who blushed crimson with embarrassment as the clapping and whistles engulfed him.

As the two boys left the stage to go back to their places, several of Sam's contemporaries reached out a hand for a high five or to pat him on the shoulder. Most of them were smiling although there were some who were a little jealous, but they managed to keep themselves under control and not show it. There were a number of girls who were wetting their knickers from the way they felt about Sam and who were seriously trying to get his attention, not realizing that the cause of his inattention was at his side.

The head called the hall to order once Josh and Sam were seated and proceeded to hand out the results to the other recipients. The four boys were oblivious to the squeals of delight from some (mainly girls) who got what they were hoping for and the groans from others who did not achieve their goals. They were too busy congratulating Sam and sharing in his delight and shock. Although Sam's teachers had all said he would do well, they had not predicted that he would wipe the board with high passes

As the quartet were leaving the school grounds Simon said, "You know you have done way better than I did with my GCSEs."

"Me too," Godfrey added.

"What did you get Josh?" Simon asked when Josh did not join in the conversation.

"Seven A's and three A*'s." Josh said softly and then looked at Sam with an apologetic expression. He had stayed quiet because he did not want to steal Sam's limelight.

"I already knew you had done that. Remember we were looking at your results sheet a while back when you were explaining to me how the marking works. What counts now is how you have done in your A levels, because that is what you need for university," Sam comforted Josh and then fell silent himself.

"And you are welcome to come with us when we get them if you are able," Godfrey said to Sam.

"Yeah, I know," Sam said a bit despondently, "but that also means it will be closer to when you all go off to university and leave me at home alone for two years. Being without Josh while he was out and I was still inside was bad enough, but two years!"

"It will be hard, but we will be home to visit as much as we are able," Simon said.

"And I will be able to come home fairly often, because I have the compensation money and don't have to work. That will give me a lot more free time to come back and see you," Josh said.

Josh had been able to pick and choose which university he went to as he had achieved top marks for his A Levels, and not needing to work part time to fund himself, he was able to devote more time to his studies.

While at university he had got home to the Silveys' house one weekend to discover that Simon too was to be home that weekend. After their tea that first evening when they were all sitting in the lounge talking about their experiences, Simon dropped a bombshell. "I have seen how much joy helping Josh and Sam has brought to both of you. Mum and dad, I think you should open a half-way home for people like Sam, who find themselves without any form of help when they come out of a place like the Academy. When I graduate and get a job I will help to support it. I'm sure there are loads of young people out there who need that kind of help. What do you think?"

"Actually we have been thinking along those lines. We've even talked to David about it to get some legal input and direction. We are going to convert the garage into a room; there is another young man that Steven has mentioned to me that will need a place in three months' time," Karl told them.

"I will pay for the conversion of the garage as my first step into my career," Josh said.

"What if they let me go and visit this guy? Maybe I can help him a bit when he comes out if he comes to stay here," Sam said.

"Okay, hold on there. We don't know all the legal details yet. Until we are satisfied we can do this within the law, we are not doing it. We might also change our minds and buy a larger house rather than convert the garage. And this other young man might not come to us at all. Thank you all for your interest and support. We will let you know what we decide when we are able to make a decision." Karl ended that conversation but did not end the thinking going on in all five of their heads.

When Sam began looking at a university Josh reminded him about the trust he had set up. Sam began to argue against accepting such charity but Josh silenced him with a single sentence. "It's not charity when partners share what they have."

"Partners? In what?"

"In life, you doofus! Sam Carruthers, I want to marry you. I want us to be together for life. What do you say to that?"

"Do you need to ask? You know that answer can only be 'yes'."

They were sitting in a restaurant in Kingston, where Josh was completing his final year of studies, when this conversation took place. "You want to do something weird?" Josh asked.

"What?"

"Let's drive home and tell the folks we want to get married."

"Now?"

"Yes! It'll only take an hour and half at this time of the evening. I can sleep there and leave early enough to make my first lecture at ten tomorrow morning."

"Okay, let's go."

The two young men paid up and left the restaurant. They had to walk for about twenty minutes to get to the house Josh shared with some fellow students and get Josh's car, and he got some things to spend the night away. He scribbled a note to his housemates telling them he had some special news and would let them know when he got home the next evening.

It took them a short while to get onto the A3, but then they had clear travelling all the way home, arriving just before ten. Karl and Esther heard the car pull into the drive and Karl got up to investigate what was going on. He saw his two boys get out of the car and turning to Esther said, "I think we have a special announcement coming." It was not going to be a surprise for them. They had seen it coming from the day Sam arrived from the Academy.

Esther's heart just bubbled when she saw the delight and happiness in both Josh and Sam as they shared their news. "Josh, are you going to tell your mother?" she asked.

"I just did!" Josh replied.

"No! We just told both our parents," Sam added.

That was enough for Esther to lose control and with a huge smile on her face the tears flowed as she pulled the two guys into a hug. Karl also had to wipe a tear from his face as he joined in the group hug.

"What's all the noise about?" Zechariah, Karl and Esther's next release from the Academy, asked as he walked into the lounge. Seeing Josh and Sam he greeted them with, "Oh, hi guys."

"Josh and Sam are getting married," Karl answered

"So why are you crying?"

"They just called us their mother and father and that means a lot to us," Esther replied.

"So if you are parents to both of them, won't their getting married be incest or something? Congratulations, by the way," Zechariah added as an afterthought.

Josh pulled Zechariah into a hug and said, "Oh, shut up, you twerp." And they all laughed.

"We do need to tell our brother before he finds out some other way. Think we can phone him now?" Sam said.

"He's a university student. Of course he'll still be up. The question is if he is sober enough to understand what you are telling him," Karl said.

Josh dialled Simon's mobile and was surprised at how quickly it was answered. "What's up? What''s happened?"

"What, you don't say hello anymore?" Josh asked.

"At this time of the night it has to be bad news. Now spill."

"Oh dear. On edge, are we? No bad news, I'm afraid. Sam and I have agreed to get married as soon as Sam graduates. Until then we are an engaged couple."

"Oh, fucking hell, whoopee! About time, and congratulations."

"Err, you are on speaker phone, and mum and dad are here too."

"All these years and you still have not learnt to control your language!" Esther called out.

"Oh shit, no! Sorry. You should have warned me, Josh."

"Squirm, mate. We'll catch you when we are all next home together."

Hanging up, Josh hugged Sam, then turned to Karl and Esther. "It still seems a little unreal sometimes, how far I've come since that day when I stood in the dock and heard that I would be spending six months in the Academy. I really felt lost; I could never have guessed that it would lead to the best things ever. Now here I am, a university student with a family I love and a man I'll spend the rest of my life with. It still makes my head spin a little. Although that might be from the driving to get here tonight. I'll have to take off fairly early to be on time for my morning lecture, so good night." With that Josh took Sam's hand and led him off to bed.

To be continued...
 

Posted: 02/03/17