In Matter of Brittenie K. , Brittenie was fingered by a student and a teacher as the perpetrator of a bomb threat written on a school bathroom stall. A felony complaint was filed with the Franklin County Family Court -- Brittenie was charged with falsely reporting an incident in the first degree -- and a hearing was held to adjudicate her a juvenile delinquent.
After the Family Court found her guilty, Brittenie was placed on probation for two years and was required to perform 250 hours of community service, abide by a curfew, wear an electronic home-monitoring device and refrain from entering school grounds except to attend class. Brittenie appealed contending, among other things, that the Family Court erred by denying her mother's request that a handwriting expert be appointed to perform a writing analysis.
Ultimately, the Appellate Division, Third Department, wasn't particularly sparked by those arguments
Although the Family Court had suggested that Brittenie's mother discuss the request with her daughter's attorney, the attorney never made a motion for an expert's analysis of the handwriting, nor was there an objection to the court's failure to appoint such an expert.
Additionally, the AD3 was of the opinion that the evidence supported the outcome. Brittenie was one of three students in the bathroom at the time the bomb threat was found, and her teacher identified the handwriting as that of Brittenie's.
Yet, the AD3 thought that the Family Court's sentence was a bit too harsh since Brittenie lacked a criminal history and didn't suffer from serious behavioral issues. As a result, the court lessened the probation period to 18 months, reduced the community service component to 100 hours, and eliminated the requirement that Brittenie wear an electronic monitoring device.
If you ask us, Brittenie still bombed.
To download a copy of the Appellate Division's decision, please use this link: Matter of Brittenie K.