Charges dropped in school vandalism incident

Charges against five Marshall teenagers allegedly involved in school vandalism at Marshall High School in May have been dropped.

In early June, Luke Weinreich, Joshua Toliver, Kristian Browder, Dalton Jarvis and Brian Day were charged with class A misdemeanor tampering with property. Marshall police alleged the five were responsible for squirting a sealant in the door keyholes at Marshall High School and deflating dozens of school bus tires.

In a conversation Monday, August 30, Saline County Prosecuting Attorney Donald G. Stouffer said his decision not to prosecute the five was made at least partly at the school district's request.

Stouffer said, "I certainly considered (the district's) wishes, but I felt that given what turned out to be the serious ramifications of what happened, the public had a right to know more. If I hadn't filed charges, there wouldn't be anything that I could say about the case."

"None of these individuals had any previous convictions, all graduated from high school and had plans to either start working or go to college. Several had scholarships and were eligible for A-plus and those kinds of considerations."

Instead of allowing the cases to make their way through the justice system, Stouffer chose the little-used legal remedy of deferred prosecution. A deferred prosecution typically requires a written agreement between the prosecutor and the defendant and lists conditions that must be fulfilled for the duration of the agreement. At the end of the agreed time period, charges are dismissed.

"I did want the public to be able to judge how we handled these cases," Stouffer continued. "The word-of-mouth reporting of how things are handled, particularly when they're not a matter of public record, can be wild," he added.

A newspaper advertisement, in which the five boys apologized for their actions and listed the terms of the deferred prosecution agreement, appeared in /The Marshall Democrat-News/ Wednesday, Aug. 25.

"The ad was important to me," Stouffer said, "because I wanted citizens to know what I did with the cases. Deferred prosecution agreements are confidential."

The penalty for the misdemeanor charge originally filed was less than the term of the agreement, Stouffer pointed out. "The agreement is for two years," he said. "And they have paid restitution - around $700 - including labor, materials and other charges the school district incurred."

If all the terms of the agreement are not met, Stouffer emphasized, the original charges could be re-filed.

Contact Kathy Fairchild at kfairchild@marshallnews.com

Related stories:
5 face charges related to May school "pranks":
www.marshallnews.com/story/1640798.html
Costs of school 'prank' not as high as rumored:
www.marshallnews.com/story/1640138.html
Police apprehend suspects in school vandalism case:
www.marshallnews.com/story/1635975.html

Vandals hit MHS doors, flatten tires on district bus fleet:
www.marshallnews.com/story/1635964.html