# Girl and her mom might get 16 years each for trying to fix homecoming queen election **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [May 5, 2021, 11:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-and-her-mom-might-get-16-years-each-for-trying-to-fix-homecoming-queen-election/941424 "2021-05-05T11:11:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2021, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-and-her-mom-might-get-16-years-each-for-trying-to-fix-homecoming-queen-election/941424/21 "2021-05-06T22:51:44Z")
I agree, no prison time. That would just be stupid. But it should be more than a slap on the wrist. ---
**Author:** ![nelliebly](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nelliebly/32/5422_2.png) [@nelliebly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nelliebly)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2021, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-and-her-mom-might-get-16-years-each-for-trying-to-fix-homecoming-queen-election/941424/22 "2021-05-06T23:16:27Z")
AFAICT, neither woman changed grades or test scores or actually harmed any other students. That’s one reason I’d be surprised if there were jail time involved. OTOH, the breech of privacy is pretty serious–not for the Homecoming election but for the rest of it; hence my hunch there’ll be probation. As far as the less-serious Homecoming election fraud goes, I really wish schools would do away with all this royalty stuff altogether, as it’s become increasingly contentious. From the tirades and threats of lawsuits from parents, you’d think there was a lot more at stake than a cheap tiara and a couple days of bragging rights. Despite tight controls on voting, ballot-retrieval, and ballot-counting at the school where I taught, there were always allegations of voting fraud _because everybody knows my Becky’s the most popular, dammit_. 🙄 ---
**Author:** ![TokyoBayer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tokyobayer/32/13989_2.png) [@TokyoBayer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TokyoBayer)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2021, 11:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-and-her-mom-might-get-16-years-each-for-trying-to-fix-homecoming-queen-election/941424/23 "2021-05-06T23:18:40Z")
> [@enipla](#): > > I agree, no prison time. That would just be stupid. But it should be more than a slap on the wrist. I wonder how much punishment would be appropriate. I presume her mother’s job is toast. The public humiliation could affect the daughter’s job prospects for years. I really don’t know. ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2021, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-and-her-mom-might-get-16-years-each-for-trying-to-fix-homecoming-queen-election/941424/24 "2021-05-06T23:20:10Z")
Yeah. But memories are short. ---
**Author:** ![TokyoBayer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tokyobayer/32/13989_2.png) [@TokyoBayer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TokyoBayer)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2021, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-and-her-mom-might-get-16-years-each-for-trying-to-fix-homecoming-queen-election/941424/25 "2021-05-06T23:23:49Z")
But google searches have long memories. The girl was clearly stupid, but she was also 17. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2021, 12:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-and-her-mom-might-get-16-years-each-for-trying-to-fix-homecoming-queen-election/941424/26 "2021-05-07T00:53:39Z")
> [@Northern\_Piper](#): > > > [@Jasmine](#): > > > > I wouldn’t support a single day in jail for something like this. The very idea is ridiculous. > > Why? She may have accessed it for a frivolous reason, but the point is that she accessed a computer system with private information in it, without any lawful authority. Why should she be spared any punishment, if convicted? The main question would be whether further punishment would help, or if her expulsion and legal troubles are themselves sufficient deterrent to future action. If it was just one time using her mom’s credentials to hack some votes, I probably would agree that this was unnecessary. It’s the other stuff that gives me pause—especially since the mom keeps being implicated as well. She was definitely quite brazen about her attacks, though. That could show a lack of remorse, or just a lack of understanding of how serious her actions were. The latter would lead me to suspect that the current punishment is enough. But the former would not. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2021, 1:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-and-her-mom-might-get-16-years-each-for-trying-to-fix-homecoming-queen-election/941424/27 "2021-05-07T01:42:45Z")
Ah, Florida. Explains it all. ---
**Author:** ![Jasmine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jasmine/32/2964_2.png) [@Jasmine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jasmine)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2021, 11:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-and-her-mom-might-get-16-years-each-for-trying-to-fix-homecoming-queen-election/941424/28 "2021-05-07T11:49:54Z")
> [@Northern\_Piper](#): > > Why? She may have accessed it for a frivolous reason, but the point is that she accessed a computer system with private information in it, without any lawful authority. Why should she be spared any punishment, if convicted? The kid could have never used the system unless her mother, the principal of the school, gave her the access credentials to a very powerful database that only a handful of people have in an entire school district. This is dereliction of duty and a violation of a vital trust. It is also indicative of a horrible character flaw. Though the kid is certainly responsible for her own actions, she is also the victim of horrible parenting. This has to be taken into account. However, as I’ve already said, I would show no mercy to the mother who exposed her entire district’s clientele. We’re talking EVERYTHING: your names, place of employment, medical history, criminal record, current address(es), past address(es), phone numbers, your child(ren)'s medical history, relatives, THEIR addresses, etc, etc, etc. When the TX arrived in the movie, “Terminator III, Rise of the Machines”, she accessed the Los Angeles school district database for information on her targets. That’s Powerschool. Trust me, they were toast when she did that. That was probably the most realistic part of the movie. I have complete access to Powerschool, and my password is 26 characters long. ---
**Author:** ![digs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/digs/32/14889_2.png) [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2021, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-and-her-mom-might-get-16-years-each-for-trying-to-fix-homecoming-queen-election/941424/29 "2021-05-07T14:45:43Z")
> [@Jasmine](#): > > my password is 26 characters long. Does it start with ABC…? ---
**Author:** ![Jasmine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jasmine/32/2964_2.png) [@Jasmine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jasmine)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2021, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-and-her-mom-might-get-16-years-each-for-trying-to-fix-homecoming-queen-election/941424/30 "2021-05-07T14:48:02Z")
> [@digs](#): > > Does it start with ABC…? Clever! 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2021, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-and-her-mom-might-get-16-years-each-for-trying-to-fix-homecoming-queen-election/941424/31 "2021-05-07T14:48:14Z")
> [@digs](#): > > > [@Jasmine](#): > > > > my password is 26 characters long. > > Does it start with ABC…? - I’m sneaky, mine starts with MNO… ---
**Author:** ![digs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/digs/32/14889_2.png) [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2021, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-and-her-mom-might-get-16-years-each-for-trying-to-fix-homecoming-queen-election/941424/32 "2021-05-07T15:02:43Z")
No one’ll guess mine. After J and K it goes _Ellemenopee …_ ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2021, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-and-her-mom-might-get-16-years-each-for-trying-to-fix-homecoming-queen-election/941424/33 "2021-05-07T15:03:44Z")
Just in case I’m not the only one who’s curious, I dug a little deeper, and learned that the system was able to flag the rigged votes as probably fraudulent, which triggered an investigation. So, no, she DIDN’T win. You’re welcome. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2021, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-and-her-mom-might-get-16-years-each-for-trying-to-fix-homecoming-queen-election/941424/34 "2021-05-07T15:09:46Z")
> [@digs](#): > > No one’ll guess mine. After J and K it goes _Ellemenopee …_ I’ll bet it starts AyyBeeCeeDeeEeeEffGeeAichEyeJay… ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2021, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-and-her-mom-might-get-16-years-each-for-trying-to-fix-homecoming-queen-election/941424/35 "2021-05-07T22:11:22Z")
> [@running\_coach](#): > > I’m sneaky, mine starts with MNO… So you’ve just made a ROT-12 password? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girl-and-her-mom-might-get-16-years-each-for-trying-to-fix-homecoming-queen-election/941424.md?page=1)