The Gilroy High School lockdown on Friday, due to a stupid prank
call where students threatened a teacher’s life, and another
episode in Morgan Hill where masked teens were toting replica guns
on an elementary school campus hold a scary warning for local
officials.
The Gilroy High School lockdown on Friday, due to a stupid prank call where students threatened a teacher’s life, and another episode in Morgan Hill where masked teens were toting replica guns on an elementary school campus hold a scary warning for local officials. Though nothing has happened here, Hollister school officials and the local police department should review their plans to handle such incidents to ensure they are adequately equipped to deal with them.
The Morgan Hill kids are lucky they didn’t wind up with toe-tags. And now that three Gilroy High School students have been arrested in Gilroy it’s time to turn our attention to matters of justice in this case.
The criminal justice process is frustrating because the three cases of the suspects, two girls and a boy, all age 17, are presently in juvenile court, which shields not only their identities, but also the charges they are facing. Santa Clara County Deputy District Attorney Kurt Kumli is withholding the specific charges that landed the three students in Juvenile Hall, citing the offenses’ supposed lack of a “serious and violent” nature.
The cell phone calls these students allegedly made brought a swarm of police and weapons onto the Gilroy High campus, imprisoned students and teachers in classrooms for hours and traumatized thousands of Gilroyans. It robbed students of precious learning time. Although the phone calls themselves were not violent, they promised violent action and brought the very real possibility of violence to the Gilroy High School campus.
Not serious and violent? We beg to differ with that characterization.
The phone calls have been described by Gilroy police as a “prank.” That’s far too mild a term for the havoc the threats to shoot a GHS teacher brought to Gilroy. On the spectrum of prank to terrorist threat, these phone calls fall much closer to the latter.
Not having law degrees, we’re not sure if the cases of these students are eligible for transfer to adult court. It might be that state law doesn’t permit it in this case or it might be that prosecutorial discretion has determined that adult charges aren’t appropriate. We believe the community is owed an explanation from the district attorney’s office. It might be that adult charges aren’t appropriate, but given the expense and trauma these threats brought to Gilroy, it seems trying these 17-year-olds as adults should at least have been seriously considered.
Then there is the matter of restitution. If these students are convicted of making the threatening calls, we hope that whatever sentences they are given include repaying the school district, the police department and the community for the very real expenses the stupid “prank” caused. Of course, calculating an appropriate restitution figure will require the wisdom of Solomon.
Invaluable and irreplaceable education time was stolen from hundreds of GHS students. Hundreds of hours of police time was spent on campus on the morning of the threats, investigating the incident, and will be logged assisting the prosecution of the case. Gilroy Unified School District and Gilroy High School officials will hold numerous meetings reviewing the incident. After this incident, as a community we’ve been a little more desensitized to terrorist-type threats – and that might prove fatal should a real threat not be taken seriously as a result.
Putting a price tag on the impact this incident has had on the community will be difficult, but it will be a valuable object lesson about the widespread and costly consequences stupid “pranks” can have.
Seeing a stunning number will serve as a deterrent to others who might be tempted to copycat this crime. It will also put in stark terms just one facet of this incidents impact on our community.
Justice has at least three purposes – to rehabilitate the offender, to safeguard society and to deter others from committing similar crimes. We urge everyone involved in this sad case to make sure all three aims are met as these cases make their way through our criminal justice system.
And we encourage Hollister officials to ensure they have an adequate plan of action should such a terrible incident happen here.
To respond to this editorial or comment on this issue, please send or bring letters to Editor, Hollister Free Lance, 350 Sixth St., Hollister, Calif. 95023 or fax to 637-4104 or e-mail to [email protected]
