Lets have preschoolers who throw Lego thrown in jail while we're about it.
Honestly, this "zero tolerance" just ruins lives. You've just taken an A grade student who could be contributing to society and possibly put them into a life of poverty and disadvantage. That's great for society.
Anything in the preceding comments which seems ridiculous has been introduced by the concept of "zero tolerance", which precludes common sense.
Zero means zero. If the rules are enforced as written - arguably as intended - this is what you get. The preceding comments just take the concept to its logical conclusion.
This statement is actually not absurd. Well, actually, it is an absurdity, but it's also an accurate description of reality.
I was reading a comment by someone (I believe a law professor and criminal defense lawyer) who rode along with a highway patrolman in the US. They played a game, where the officer would follow a car, and the officer would win if he could name a legitimate traffic offense committed by the car, for which he could pull the driver over if he was so inclined.
The officer won every time, usually within well under a mile.
There are so many laws, and they are so complex, that just about anyone is probably guilty of something if you just look hard enough. Only the thin paper shield of the Constitution (in particular 4th and 5th amendments) is about the only thing that stands between just about anybody in the US and prison.
For more, see this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6wXkI4t7nuc