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James,
The 15 girls who have been charged, have been charged with misdemeanors, not felonies. They could spend as much as one year in jail or face a (I think) $2,000 fine. They won't have a felony record.
The expulsions handed out by the school (except for the three who have taken the district to court and didn't accept the deal) will allow the girls to graduate with their grades frozen as they were at the time that they were first suspended. They have to do community service and they missed most of the end of the year festivities (prom, graduation, grad night).
I don't think these consequences will ruin anyone's life. The 15 that the courts are dealing with probably needed a wake-up call. I'm lucky to have kids who haven't caused me any real trouble, but I hope that if they did participate in something like this, that I would make them accept the consequences for their actions. I would also get them counseling to help them understand why they acted that way and how to make better choices in the future.
If my child's actions caused them to be arrested I would certainly provide him or her with competent legal representation. I would want to keep them from doing jail time, if I could. I really do have an issue with the parents who have taken the district to court to fight the expulsions. Their kids are getting the wrong message.
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