Judge Orders Defendant to Draw Him
According to the BBC (thanks, James), a judge in Northern Ireland has agreed to give a 16-year-old "one last chance" after the boy failed a drug test that showed he had (gasp!) consumed cannabis. After the boy's solicitor argued that his client was "bored" in school (presumably to explain why he had consumed cannabis) but did have an interest in art (also relevant), the judge decided to put that to the test.
He granted bail, but said the boy would have to come to court for three days and draw lawyers. (Jail sounds better, frankly.) "You must bring with you a sketch pad and a pencil and you can draw me and the solicitors for two hours each day. Only me and the solicitors, and I will review the matter on Wednesday," the judge said.
My guess is that the judge is testing the solicitor's claim that if only the defendant were properly motivated, he could refrain from consuming cannabis, and that exercising his interest in art would be one way to motivate him. "If you look stoned you will be arrested," he told the boy, which I think supports the aforementioned guess.
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