GHS streakers face criminal charges

Two male students bared all, one drove getaway car

A third student assisted as a getaway driver, said Kate Harrison, a spokeswoman for Montgomery County Public Schools.

‘‘I don’t want to comment on how we found out who the students were ... but we do have video cameras around our school,” Handy Collins said. The school is located at 314 S. Frederick Ave.

Because they are students, their names and ages, and the disciplinary action taken against those involved, are not being released, she said.

Three students were charged as juveniles with indecent exposure, said Montgomery County police Sgt. Kent Smith.

The mother of one of the students charged declined to comment pending discussions with Handy Collins.

Streaking at the first pep rally of the year is considered a tradition at the school, dating back at least four years, according to several students interviewed by The Gazette last week.

Laurie Augustino, Gaithersburg High PTSA president, also said she has heard of previous streaking incidents, but hasn’t witnessed them.

Augustino declined to comment further.

Senior Lukas Martinson said he watched the scene earlier this month from the stands where he was sitting with the marching band. ‘‘It really wasn’t explicit or anything like that,” he said.

But Handy Collins said streaking is an inappropriate way to express school pride. She said police involvement was warranted because indecent exposure in public places is against the law.

‘‘I would like for students to display their Trojan pride in a more appropriate, legal way,” she said. ‘‘Our students have a lot of school spirit and they are creative and I’d like to see them come up with a tradition that demonstrates their spirit and is appropriate for a high school and is also legal.”

The incident has triggered a flurry of student and parent reaction on an Internet exchange site about school matters.

For parent Karen Galuska, criminal charges should apply only when the act endangers or injures other students, she said in an interview with The Gazette.

‘‘To me it didn’t seem to hurt anybody,” said Galuska, mother of a senior and sophomore. ‘‘Sometimes I feel we should let kids be kids.”

Though some students have talked about rumors of a walk-out protest and wearing T-shirts with slogan in support of the streakers, Handy Collins said she’s seen neither.

However, she said school officials also have not prevented students from protesting through petitions or other means of free speech sanctioned by MCPS.

‘‘We have not thwarted any students’ rights to respond as long as they do it in an appropriate way,” she said.

Streaking is highly uncommon at county schools, Harrison said.

There were no reported streaking incidents at county schools in at least the last two years, she said.