Entertainment

Teens Get 'Jackass' Punishment

May 10, 2001 / 2:16 PM EDT / AP

A judge decided that four teen-agers who tried to recreate a television stunt showing a man jumping over a moving car needed refinement, not punishment.

So Kenton District Court Judge Martin Sheehan ordered the Independence, Ky., boys to quit watching TV for six months and read 12 classics each and turn in a book report every two weeks.

Sheehan told the teens on Wednesday the only shows they may watch on TV are nightly news programs.

The boys became reluctant celebrities when a videotape of the April 23 stunt aired on national television.

The judge - who once ordered a man to wear a sign saying he tried to buy sex and got caught - opted for the behavior adjustment rather than formal prosecution.

"What they did was stupid and incredibly dangerous," Sheehan said later. "I felt like there should be a consequence for their action, but that it should be tempered because the boys didn't intend for anyone to get hurt."

A 16-year-old boy broke his leg and ankle trying to jump over a car driven by a friend while one of the other teens videotaped the action from the passenger's seat.

Police in the northern Kentucky city said the teens were inspired by MTV's "Jackass" show, but MTV said the show has never run a stunt in which someone gets hit by a car.

The four boys maintained they were copying no one.

The stunt prompted Reebok International Inc. to pull a television commercial showing a pro basketball star leaping over an oncoming car.

The boys will be required to perform 50 to 100 hours of community service and had their drivers' licenses suspended for a year.

If the boys don't meet the terms, they could be prosecuted on felony charges of wanton endangerment, punishable in adult court by up to five years in prison.