12 of 'Kutztown 13' get a break

They didn't get off too easy, but felony charges were off the table for most of the 13 high school students in Kutzdown, Pa. (see "Student hacks: Criminal?" for the original story). For using school-supplied laptops (with easy-to-guess passwords) to download chat programs and monitor school administrators online, they'd been "charged as juveniles with computer trespass and computer theft, both felonies, and could have faced a wide range of sanctions, including juvenile detention," the Associated Press reports. What most of them got was the requirement of 15 hours of community service, a written apology, a class on personal responsibility, and a few months' probation. "One student who has had prior dealings with the juvenile probation office was not offered a deal and the case was expected to proceed," the AP added. [Thanks to BNA Internet Law for pointing this news out.]