BY MAIRE O’NEILL
maire@losalamosreporter.com

The First Judicial District Attorney’s Office on Monday responded to a request from the Los Alamos Reporter for comment on the dismissal of petty misdemeanor charges against four defendants of one count each of “possessing or consuming alcoholic beverages on public school grounds”.

Spokesman Nathan Lederman said that although prosecution of petty misdemeanors is generally handled by law enforcement, LAPD requested the assistance of the District Attorney’s Office and had agreed to prosecute the cases.

“The maximum exposure under this statute is a fine of up to $100, though courts may also impose a community service requirement. The defendants entered into a pre-prosecution agreement with the FJDA whereby they would each complete a set number of hours of community service in exchange for a dismissal upon completion. The community service has been successfully completed by all defendants, which led to last week’s dismissals,” Lederman said. “After considering the facts and evidence, this represents a fair resolution, and is consistent of the treatment of any other similarly situated defendant accused of a petty misdemeanor.”