According to the district court clerk's office, Demma Rodriguez '03 and Andrew Kelsey '05 have been charged with "malicious destruction of property" of a value exceeding $250.
"The case has been adjudicated through the [College] discipline process," said Acting Dean of Students Charri Boykin-East. "The students involved received a year dismissal."
President Tom Gerety announced the dismissal at last week's faculty meeting. "They can petition to return starting next September," he said.
Malicious destruction of property falls under chapter 266 section 127 of the Annotated Laws of Massachusetts. According to the law, "If such destruction or injury is willful and malicious, [it shall] be punished by imprisonment in the state prison for not more than ten years or by a fine of $3,000 or three times the value of the property so destroyed or injured, whichever is greater, and imprisonment in jail for not more than two and one-half years." It may not be possible to repair the statues, and any attempt at restoration will cost tens of thousands of dollars.
Prior to the announcement of the dismissal of Rodriguez and Kelsey, the Association of Amherst Students (AAS) issued a letter condemning the vandalism and urging that the parties be held fully responsible.
"We, the [AAS], are appalled by such happenings and encourage the entire College-students, faculty, staff, and alumni-to consider the ramifications of this vandalism. Moreover, the AAS calls for the individual or individuals who perpetrated this horrific act of destruction to be held responsible for their actions," stated the letter.
AAS president David Bugge '04E commented on the decision of the College to dismiss the responsible students for a year. "[I and the AAS] trust the discretion and judgment of the disciplinary committee for they had all the facts available to them whereas I did not," Bugge said.