Crime & Safety

Calabasas High Students Enter Plea in School Vandalism Case

Two of three teens charged in the spraying-painting of ethnic slurs on campus enter the equivalent of a not guilty plea.

Two of the three students charged in the spray-painting of anti-Semitic and racist slurs on the school's campus entered the Juvenile Court equivalent of a not guilty plea at a Sylmar courthouse on Thursday.

The attorneys for the boys denied the petition filed by the Los Angeles County district attorney's office, said DA spokeswoman Jane Robinson.

The next step is picking a start date for the trial of the two male students. The third suspect is scheduled to enter his plea on June 30, Robinson said.

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Two of the suspects are 16 and one is 17, said Sharia Davila-Morales of the DA's office. Their names will not be made public because they are minors.

The three students were arrested after confessing to deputies during an interview that they were responsible for the vandalism, according to authorities. The damage was discovered by Calabasas High maintenance workers on April 23.

Find out what's happening in Calabasaswith free, real-time updates from Patch.

In May, the DA's offices filed felony vandalism charges with a hate crime enhancement against the students.

If convicted of the vandalism charges, the three teenagers could each spend up to three years in confinement at a Division of Juvenile Justice facility, Davila-Morales said.

They could serve more time if they are found guilty of a hate crime, although the length of that sentence is unclear at this time, she added.


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