Two boys, one 16 and the other 17, hatched a plan for a prank. They’d steal a stuffed deer, stand it up on the road at night and have fun watching cars swerve to avoid hitting it.

The prank worked as the boys expected — sort of. The deer, stolen from a yard, had only two legs, so the practical jokers had to rig a support system so the stuffed deer could stand on its own.

After dark the high school boys set the deer up on a highway at the top of a hill on a curve. As expected, approaching cars spotted the deer at the last moment and had to swerve to avoid hitting it.

One teen driver wasn’t so lucky. He swerved to avoid the deer, but lost control and his car rolled into a ditch. The driver, a 19-year-old college freshman, was ejected from the car when his seat belt gave way. His back and other bones were broken. A teenaged passenger also was tossed to the ground and suffered a brain injury.

These incidents happened in November of 2005. Last month in juvenile court in Kenton, Ohio, the two youthful defendants entered pleas of "no contest" to charges of vehicular vandalism, possession of criminal tools, and petty larceny.

Both boys were found guilty on all counts and sentenced to 60-days in a juvenile detention center, plus fines and community service.

The boys are members of a local high school football team — a team that has won state championships for two of the past five years. The 16-year-old defendant is the team’s quarterback and the other defendant, a 17-year-old, is also a member of the team.

Judge Gary McKinley, said at the time he ordered the sentence: "I shouldn’t be doing this, but I’m going to. I see positive things about participating in football." That said, the judge ruled the two boys can postpone serving their jail time until after the football season is over. When not in school or on the football field the boys will be under house arrest.

The judge’s order has divided the town of 8,000 people in northwest Ohio. Some say the order shows favoritism toward athletes; while others say it’s a just and fair verdict.