Senior Poultry Prank Peeves NJ High School

Anthony Cesareo and Tyler Bruno stuffed chickens into their high school (WCBS).

Senior pranks are an age old (and often unfunny) tradition, but don't bother telling that to the administrators of Woodbridge High School in New Jersey. Three seniors at that school are in deep water this year after they stuffed a few live chickens into the school's windows after hours.

In response to the loose poultry the school has not only suspended the trio (two of whom, Anthony Cesareo and Tyler Bruno, are minors and one, Bryan Pater, who is 18), they've also charged them with trespassing and disorderly conduct and are threatening to not let them attend their prom or their graduation. Seriously. Over a bunch of chickens that were found by a janitor before school even started. And the principal won't even let other students wear shirts with cartoon chickens!

The three boys don't deny they bought the chickens or that they put them in the building—in fact they confessed—they just think think the school is overreacting. “Just how harsh they’re being with the punishment and everything, the seriousness of a not serious prank,” one told WCBS.

Because two of the boys are minors police won't confirm the charges against them, but they will confirm that the 18-year-old has been charged with trespassing. He faces up to six-months in prison and $1,000 fine if convicted (though a judge could make that community service). And the cops are defending their response, "We realize it’s a prank and we don’t want to charge people with crimes they shouldn’t be charged with. But you don’t want to make light of the incident. What’s next, you bring a cow into the school?"

The whole things sounds pretty plucked up to us. And it isn't like they even had an original prank. When we were in high school a number of seniors we knew discussed the viability of bringing live chickens into the school—but then they remembered that our school had escalators so the idea was scrapped (and now, because senior pranks are just that lame, we can't for the life of us remember what our actual prank was).

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By Garth Johnston in News on March 17, 2011 6:48 PM

Comments [rss]

TimeDown

Criminal charges seem excessive. Sometimes pranks should be seen as just that, pranks. School related sanctions seem to be proportional punishments.

Jesse James Payette-Steinberg

They charge them for this, why can't the police the producers of Jersey Shore? Honestly that show killing people's brain cells but no one cares. Now that is a sad state of affairs. A prank gets you arrested, yet horrible tv can still go on.

I guess these pranksters should have paid off a few people and got a lobbyist, maybe just maybe they would have never gotten arrested.

Dan

If the principal were on the ball, here's what would happen to these kids:

1. Treble pay for damages and overtime.
2. A serious, original-research writing project. Something about animal cruelty, food safety -- something to do with chickens. Original sourcing and in-person interviews mandatory.
3. Detention or enforced after-school community service. What senior doesn't want to ditch in his spring term?
4. Perfect attendance through the end of school.

You don't do it? You don't walk at graduation. If it's egregious, withhold the diploma until the projects/community service are done and the money is paid.

And banning chicken T-shirts? That's just the lack of a sense of humor. Shows weakness, not strength.

nicemarmot

Live animals in general aren't really the best for pranks. The risk of the animals getting hurt is just too great. And really, if you start hurting animals for a joke, you're just a loser. So I don't really feel that bad for them.

Although one year when I was a high schooler the seniors released a shitload of live crickets into the school at lunchtime. I wasn't impressed until several girls starting running around screaming "Spiders! Spiders!" at the top of their lungs. Then the janitor tried to suck them up with his shop vac, which resulted in the shop vac chirping. That was pretty good.