Student expelled for shotgun in truck

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (CNN) - A Northern California teenager is fighting his expulsion from school for having a shotgun in his truck off-campus.

At the center of it all is Gary Tudesko, 16, a gun-loving, duck-hunting, rebel of a teenager with a record of bad behavior.

"It doesn't have anything to do with the things he has done before that he has been somewhat of a turkey," said Jeanette Denis, a Glen County resident. "I think he knows it."

Tudesko's attorney thinks the "bad boy image" prejudiced his school's decision to expel him, after he brought a shotgun "near" campus one morning after he had gone duck hunting before school.

In October 2009, Tudesko drove up and parked his truck on a city street just off of the school property. He unloaded his shotgun, locked his doors and took off to class. Hours later, a K-9 sniffed out the gun in his car and Tudesko was gone.

"This is clearly not a gun rights issue, to me its a safety issue on my public school campus that I have to stand up for," said Mort Gievett, Willows High School principal.

Attorneys for the school district said they had the right to discipline Tudesko because they actually had authority over him while he was on his way to school. No way, according to his attorneys, the law is clear.

"It specifically says at school, or at a school related activity," said Gievett.

Neither of which applies to Tudesko, who is enjoying support from a majority of his community, where hunting is a way of life.

"One of the main things thats lacking in some of this stuff is a little common sense," said Allen Alves, a Glen County resident.

A decision on whether to allow Tudesko back in school should be made by Friday.