After more than two hours of deliberation and extensive, prior investigations by authorities, the Los Gatos­Saratoga Joint Union High School District board of trustees met during closed session Feb. 3. They unanimously voted to expel two of three students charged with violating sections of the California Education Code.

Eight students from three different cases were initially suspended in early January, but only four of them were recommended for expulsion. District Superintendent Dr. Cindy Ranii described the incidents as not being "an interconnected cheating ring."

The expulsion of one of those four students is still pending. The names of students and their families are not being released because of their ages and for confidentiality reasons.

The first cheating incident, according to Principal Kevin Skelly, involved a male student who allegedly used a small computer device to obtain the password from a teacher's computer. The student was then able to steal exams and answers which were circulated among other students. Investigators are still determining whether he had any intention of bombing the school and was involved in a chemistry lab break-in on Jan. 16, according to Capt. John Hirokawa of the Westside Sheriff's Substation.

The second problem involved a math student who broke into a school computer, Skelly said, and attempted to change a grade. The third incident included two other students who took a printed test out of a classroom and made copies.

Charges against the expelled students included stealing and causing damage to school property as well as disrupting school activity, according to the California Education Code. The extent of the damages are unknown, but the school property was related to electronic files and databases. To carry out the expulsions, the school board had to be convinced there were no other feasible means of correction or the presence of the students at school was causing continual physical danger.

Robert Bredel, a Los Altos attorney, said his client, who was initially recommended for expulsion, was not one of the two students expelled from the district. The student will be reinstated to the district, at a location yet to be determined by Ranii. Ranii said the board believed this case didn't meet the criteria for expulsion.

"They will come up with a program that's best suited for him," Bredel said of his client. "The district has indicated a good deal of helpfulness with this."

Bredel could not discuss the evidence brought against his client, but did indicate his client's actions were not related to bomb threats or the break-in of the chemistry lab.

"We have maintained his innocence from the beginning," Bredel said.

When asked if he thought the expulsion process was fair, Bredel said he could only say he felt it was a difficult procedure.

"I think it's a process that not a lot of people are fully aware of," Bredel said. "And it has been very taxing on the student and his parents."

The other two students were expelled through the end of this academic school year and the summer. David Miclean, a Redwood City attorney representing one of the expelled students, said he's hoping to see the school district and Ranii handle this situation in a constructive way.

"The board made this decision, and we still have serious concerns about the process—the investigation process and the expulsion process that led to that point [on Feb. 3]," Miclean said.

Miclean said Ranii has indicated she'll work with the student to ensure he's placed into a new school for the remainder of the school semester. Ranii said options after expulsion include a private school, a comprehensive high school somewhere in the Bay Area or an alternative education program in the county.

After completing a rehabilitation plan, Miclean's client and the other expelled student may be eligible to attend Saratoga High School again next fall. Ranii described general components of a rehabilitation plan such as a student demonstrating steady progress in classes, receiving counseling and participating in community service.

Miclean said they are going to wait to see what happens on the district's part before possibly filing an appeal, which must be done within 30 days of the Feb. 3 decision. Miclean confirmed his client was not involved in the bomb-threat or chemistry lab burglary. As for as how his client and family have been holding up during the length of the suspension, Miclean said they want their lives back.

"It has been a very grueling ordeal emotionally for the family," Miclean said.

Prior to the board's expulsion decision, some of the involved parents and their attorneys spoke to board members asking that the students receive alternative punishments for reform instead of expulsion, such as volunteer service or having computer access denied to them.

The father of Miclean's client told board members that his son is hard working and comes from a family that values education.

"The last four weeks have been truly a trying time in our lives," said the father, referring to the length of his son's suspension from school.

The father added that he did not believe the evidence being brought against his son was fully accurate. Also, after taking his finals, the father said his son, who is normally an A student, received a number of F's.

"He's pretty much a destroyed kid," the father said. "We are concerned about rehabilitation and the path to virtue as parents. We are committed to that with our son in every way possible."

The mother of the same student told board members that her family's reputation has been damaged in the community.

"I ask you as a parent, is this really the kind of punishment he deserves?" she said. "Isn't life all about second chances?"