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AN apology. That's what Andrew Merryweather wants most of all from the boys he says left him paralysed from the waist down in a fight at an Engen garage in Claremont 18 months ago.

But he is unlikely to get it. Not now that Merryweather is considering civil action against the six former accused. After a marathon trial, the Wynberg Magistrate's Court on Monday, 17 March, found the group not guilty of attempted murder.

Initially, eight boys were charged in the wake of the 2006 assault. Dane Killian was acquitted and charges against Shane Wolendorp were dropped last year. Last week, Samuel Davidson, Michael Enslin, Justin Maxwell, Liam Hechter and Oliver Scholtz were found not guilty. The only person to be convicted was Joël Thackwray. He was found guilty on a charge of assault with intent to commit grievous bodily harm to Merryweather's brother, Nicholas, on the evening of the fight. He was sentenced to six months? imprisonment suspended for four years.

"I knew from the beginning there was a strong possibility that they would be found not guilty," says Merryweather, speaking from Camps Bay?s Theatre on the Bay restaurant, which he continues to manage.

"I am not interested in them being punished, but I want them to take responsibility for what they have done." He says he would have been satisfied if the accused had visited him in hospital and had apologised. "Instead, they hired a lawyer even before I did."

"When I woke up in hospital, I wasn't thinking about the outcome of any court case."

Faced with a string of legal and medical bills, Merryweather is now considering a civil case against those he says are responsible for his condition.

He says his legal advisors believe he stands a very good chance of winning damages.

Merryweather says he has been touched by the amount of support he has received from the people of Cape Town.

"Strangers have emailed and phoned and even visited me. I have also been approached for advice on treatment by others who are paralysed."

Although he says his treatment is going well, he reluctantly admits that he might never walk again.

"But there has been some improvement. I am now able to put my full weight on my right leg."

Merryweather is excited about the possibility of participating in Project Walk, an American programme that aims to provide an improved quality of life for people with spinal cord injuries through exercise, education and support.

* People's Post enquired about the possibility of speaking to one of the former accused, but defence counsel William Booth said an interview was unlikely given the possibility of future civil action. He disagreed with Merryweather's counsel, saying he did not believe a civil suit against his clients would be successful.

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