A teen-age boy was given a rare opportunity to gain some work experience as a lawyer yesterday as part of his sentence when he appeared in court charged with taking a motorcycle.

In a ground-breaking move, the 15-year-old, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was given 100 hours of community service with the office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) after telling the court he regretted what he had done because he wanted to be a lawyer.

Magistrate Tyrone Chin said he was so impressed with the boy's own mitigation, remorse and articulate apology that he believed the chance to work with the DPP would set him on the right path.

The Pembroke youth, who was accompanied in court by his mother, pleaded guilty to taking a bike without permission, riding while under age, and failing to stop for Police in Hamilton in April this year.

Juvenile Court heard that the boy fled the scene, leaving his passenger and the bike behind. But Police caught up with him a day or so later, landing him in court for the first time.

The boy said: "I look back at what I did and know that I did something wrong."

He said he realised that the court would punish him, but the greatest punishment was knowing how he had upset his mother and father.

He said: "You will punish me, but it won't be as bad as the punishment I have given my mother and father. For me to look into my mother's eyes and see the hurt in her eyes - that's the part that hurts the most."

The boy said after the incident, he had also realised who his friends really were. He said both he and his friend had always promised to cover each other's backs, but on this occasion, his friend had turned him in.

And he said he realised that his appearance in court had not done his chosen career as a lawyer any good.

The teenager's mother, who works with children, said she was "totally shocked" by the incident, but said, working with children, she had realised never to say that her child would not behave out of turn.

The panel congratulated the mother for bringing up such a well-mannered, articulate child, and said that after private discussions about how to punish the boy with Crown Counsel prosecutor Graveney Bannister, they believed the best option would be community service under the watchful eye of Mr. Bannister.

He sentenced him to 100 hours community service at the DPP's office between the hours of nine to five, one day a week, as arranged between Mr. Bannister and the boy's school and parents.

Mr Chin said the action the boy had taken did not help him in his chosen career, but said the opportunity was not lost. He said: "There is still time. If you make amends, you can still follow your chosen career. We have a ground-breaking situation here. What you said and how you said it has impressed the court.

"Somebody (Mr. Bannister) has stepped forward in this court in a way I have never seen before and I must commend him. You are going to shadow Mr. Bannister to the courts. Treat this as a silver lining. I have never seen anyone do this and it's not meant for everyone.

"It's an inside look into the legal courts of Bermuda, which any young teenager does not have. If you say you want to be a lawyer, you have the inside scoop. You may treat it as a punishment, but I see it as an opportunity.

"If Mr. Bannister says `jump', you ask `how high?'"

But the boy was warned that if it did not work out, he would be brought back before the court again for an alternative punishment.

And his progress will be monitored by Probation Services.

After the hearing, the teenager went to each member of the court, thanked them and shook their hands.