ARIZONA COMPUTER PARTS STOLEN FROM 118 COMPUTERS AT CHINO VALLEY HIGH SCHOOL Prescott Newspapers OnlineSenior prank ends bad; district interferes with investigation
By ANDREW DRAPER
Special to the Courier
What many students said was a clever senior prank on Dec. 16 turned bad for 11 Chino Valley High School students when the Police Department recommended that they face charges of burglary, possession of burglary tools, criminal trespassing and disruption of an educational institution.

The police became in-volved after the students went on the campus during the winter break and removed a key component from more than 100 computers, then led staff members and police on a “scavenger hunt” to recover the missing parts.
THE CRIME

Chino Police officer and School Resource Officer Karen Hough said that the students, along with eight adults and two minors, removed a Random Access Memory (RAM) circuit board from each of 118 staff computers in 47 classrooms, leaving a puzzle piece in its place.

“A piece of white paper was left on (CVHS interim Principal John) Paris’ office door with a note saying not to worry, the computer parts were only borrowed and to put the pieces together to solve the puzzle,” she said. “At around 9:30 a.m., Mr. Paris received a call that he could find the next clue in locker 306. They got impatient. They were watching us.”

Hough said the students gained access to the rooms with a stolen key.

“One of the kids who goes to school there, his mother has keys. They took them from his mom, had duplicates made, and then returned them, without her knowing,” she said. “People say these are school keys and they can’t be duplicated, but that’s not true.”

When school staff members and police assembled the puzzle, it led to the campus’ Bates House.

Once at the Bates House, officers found a second clue in the form of a note directing investigators to look for a key in the vehicle of one staff member.

When police found the key, a third clue led to a locker on the campus, where investigators found the missing RAM cards.

Hough said the students were very well organized. “They had maps, walkie-talkies, cell phones and a plan of action,” she said.

CVPD Chief Pat Huntsman said the maps were very specific.

“They broke into three groups, so everyone was assigned an area,” she said. “Each group was given a map which told them which computers to hit.”

Huntsman said the plan began to unravel when police found a copy of a map the students used at the crime scene. “The map had a cell phone number on it. The detectives got a subpoena to find out whose number it was,” she said.

The investigation of that student led police to a classmate.

INTERFERENCE

Hough said that after officers uncovered the identities of two suspects, school officials called those students in and offered to drop the charges against all the participants if the others turned themselves in to school officials.

“On Jan. 4, John Paris called me to his office. He stated that since the burglary on Dec. 16, he has spoken to the two students who are suspects and the district office told both students that if they name the other students, and if those students come in to the office and stated their involvement, there will be no criminal charges,” she said.

Huntsman said the re-maining nine students turned themselves in and now tell police that because they made a deal with the school officials, they won’t talk to police investigators.

Huntsman said she is very upset with the district’s action.

“Originally, school district officials were adamant about pursuing charges, but decided to take matters into their own hands by offering to drop the charges if the offenders turned themselves in,” she said. “I told her (CVSD Superintendent Linda Nelson) I was upset about it, (and asked her) why did you interfere?” she said. “She said they were good kids and she didn’t want them to face charges. I told her that wasn’t her choice. It definitely makes it difficult to do an investigation.”

Nelson declined to comment on the case.

Huntsman said school officials should have left the investigation to the police.

“It is the Police Department’s obligation to the community to pursue alleged criminal activity in an equitable manner. Therefore, appropriate charges against the students were referred to the county attorney. I have a duty to see that these things are solved, no matter who does it. You have to treat everybody the same,” she said. “Our case is closed. Everything has been sent in.”

Huntsman said the situation of a band of people illegally running around the school property at night could turn bad very quickly if officers discovered the crime while in progress. “They had walkie-talkies and cell phones in their hands. How is the officer supposed to know what’s in their hands?” she said. “It could have turned tragic.”

Huntsman said because of interference by district officials, the case probably will not go any further.

“The case is such that it can’t really be prosecuted now, because no one will talk to us,” she said. “But, it’s up to the county attorney now.”

Deputy Yavapai County Attorney Ethan Wolfinger said his office has reviewed the Police Department’s case, has spoken with district officials, and has reviewed the district’s actions and the penalties they have imposed, “and now the case will not go forward.”

He said the County Attorney’s Office also has advised school district officials that, in the future, they need to take care how much they involve themselves in a criminal investigation.

“The school district does not have the authority to make the decision (of prosecution),” Wolfinger said.

Paris sent a letter to the CVPD saying the students are academic leaders and that figured in the punishment.

“While these students did do wrong, they are all academic leaders and we do not wish to blemish their futures,” he said. “The students were attempting a senior prank that went bad. Several of these students are members of the National Honor Society and Student Council. They will lose the right to hold office in these organizations. Others were members of athletic teams and will forfeit their right to participate.”

In a letter to officer Hough, Paris said the students involved each received a 10-day suspension, and that they must perform 40 hours of community service and pay restitution