Lynn Trio May be Expelled for Trashing Fecteau-Leary

By Dan Baer / The Daily Item, September 30, 2008

LYNN - Three Lynn middle-school students are facing a possible expulsion this week after they were caught in the act vandalizing the Fecteau-Leary School over the weekend.

According to several sources, three male students who live in the area of the North Common Street School were arrested inside the building at 7:45 p.m. Saturday, but not before they trashed classrooms and offices and destroyed several pieces of expensive equipment.

Lynn Public Schools Attendance and Discipline Specialist Richard Iarrobino said Tuesday that the three boys somehow entered the secure school on Saturday and began breaking into classrooms and vandalizing the school.

The vandals allegedly threw papers throughout the school, vandalized bathrooms, discharged fire extinguishers and destroyed several computers by pouring soda on the keyboards.

Iarrobino's own office in the building was vandalized as the students smashed glasses, tipped over plants and scattered papers throughout he room.

Classical Freshmen Academy Principal Judith Taylor said much of the damage was done to the third floor of the building, where Classical freshmen reside while construction continues on their school, including damage done to the copy machine in her office.

"We did have quite a bit of damage. They threw papers around, sprayed the fire extinguisher all over things, they poured some Coke on my Xerox machine," said Taylor. "It is silly, stupid vandalism, but it is pretty serious."

Along with the freshman from Classical, the school also houses middle and high school alternative programs and a small number of administrative offices, including that of Iarrobino and School Safety and Security Officer Robert Ferrari.

The three students are reportedly in sixth and seventh grade at one of the city's middle schools, most likely Breed, as that is the district school for the North Common Street area where they reside.

Officials do not know how the students got into the secure building, and police are still investigating the incident.

Lynn Police Public Information Officer Lt. William Sharpe would not comment on the details of the incident, as all three suspects are juveniles and have already been arraigned in juvenile court.

According to Iarrobino, the students were captured and arrested inside the school as the vandalism was taking place and will now face a disciplinary hearing at their school.

The students are suspended until the hearing, where the school's principal can decide whether to suspend the three boys indefinitely. If they are convicted of the felony charges they face, they will be expelled from Lynn Public Schools.

Iarrobino called the chances of the students' expulsion "pretty good."

"They are going to be dealt with very seriously," he said. "They are going to face a preliminary suspension with their principal to decide whether they will be suspended indefinitely under MGL 37 H 1/2."

Mass General Law 37 H 1/2 states that juveniles convicted of a felony outside of school can be expelled and forced to take home tutoring.

Superintendent Nicholas Kostan was briefly informed of the incident this week and said that most of the mess has been cleaned. He plans on meeting with Ferrari later this week to determine just how the students were able to surpass door locks and enter the building.

Officials are unsure of the cost of the damage, but Kostan vowed to seek restitution from the students once a number is determined.

Taylor called the incident "disheartening" but said it did not affect the quality of education when students returned to school on Monday.

"The city got the mess cleaned up and we were back to business on Monday," she said. "It is just sad to see and I feel bad that these kids had to make that kind of bad decision."