LEWISTON — Nearly 70 children and adolescents packed a conference room in the B Street Community Center on Tuesday to speak about the legal system, culture and a police force there to help them.

Rilwan Osman of the Somali Bantu Youth Association of Maine said this is the group’s second year of holding weekly meetings and workshops through the summer.

Osman said the workshops focus on educating youth about the legal system, how it affects them, how to prevent winding up on the wrong side of it, and how to become role models in their community.

Before the meeting, raucous youths of all ages filed into the room, adults finding extra folding chairs as they made their way in.

Soon, police Sgt. Robert Ullrich and Officer Patrick Griffin arrived, standing silently in the back of the room as all noise came to an abrupt halt.

After they were seated, the officers asked the crowd if they were ready to go back to school. Laughter again filled the room as children began to banter among themselves before elder teens and adults calmed them down.

Even young children would turn to younger ones with a distinct, “shhhhh” to silence them.

Shobow Saban, workshop leader, began with introductions and background information while Osman translated for the crowd in their native language.

“What happens if you get arrested?” Saban said. “What will happen to your life? There are a lot of problems that get them arrested — many don’t understand the system — they deal, they fight.”

Saban said he and other youths got together to teach about customs; describing the current Somali community as “between cultures.”

According to Saban, communication has broken down between children and their parents due to a growing language gap.

Saban said he began by asking the children what they were going to do if they failed a class or if they were being bullied.

“I ask them questions so I’m not just giving them answers,” Saban said.

He described the children of the Somali community, much like we would describe any other child when summer leaves them without schedules and structure — too much time on their hands.

Saban’s answer was for the volunteers to engage the youth in soccer games, trips to the beach and to simply come together to be with other youths, “not the drug dealers.”

This proposition wasn’t given lightly to the children either. According to Saban, “Come to practice or you can’t watch. If you can’t watch, you can’t go on field trips.”

Saban didn’t sugar coat the effect of drugs in the community and the destructive power they have over people and their families.

Officer Griffin of the Community Resource Office said he was there “to reach out, to have contact with you guys and your community.”

He spoke of the police and the Somali community learning from each other and emphasizing good experiences with the local police.

Judge Rick Lawrence of 8th District Court in Lewiston asked the crowd, “Has anyone been to the District Court for a juvenile matter?”

Silence.

“Good,” Lawrence said, and then offered to set up a tour for the group. He said if they are ever facing prosecution, his job is to make sure their rights are being preserved as well as pass judgment.

Lawrence assured the youths they have to work hard to wind up before the prosecutor and even then, the system wants to fix problems and prevent them from happening again.

In a question and answer session at the end, many of the children directed their questions toward the officers.

“Did you play sports?” one shouted from the middle of the crowd.

“How long have you been a police officer?” asked another as more hands shot up.

“Have you ever used your gun?” asked another, bringing another silence to the room.

Both officers responded with a negative, drawing more than one astonished gasp from the crowd.

Sgt. Ullrich, supervisor of the Community Resource team, told the youths that the juvenile justice system was designed with the knowledge that children make mistakes.

He said it’s patterns of behavior that will get them in more trouble. He likened such patterns as building a negative reputation with the courts, the community and the mosque.

Officer Griffin addressed the crowd about his brush with the law as an adolescent. He admitted putting another youth in the hospital in high school, resulting in probation. He said that although he made a mistake, he didn’t do it again, making it a pattern of behavior.

After his own troubles with the law, Griffin said he was still able to become a police officer.

After the meeting, dinner was served and included Sambusas, light, fried dough filled with spiced meat and vegetables and homemade bread, and pizza.

dmcintire@sunjournal.com