BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) A retired Bridger High School teacher who had special education students remove asbestos floor tiles from a school building has been sentenced to one year of probation.

Sixty-year-old Randal Ecker pleaded guilty in July to violating the federal Clean Air Act.

Plans to renovate portions of a school building were approved by the school board in 2003, but they didn't include the removal of floor tiles.

At Ecker's direction, five students removed more than 100 square feet of floor tiles that contained asbestos. Ecker received permission to remove the tiles from a newly hired superintendent who didn't know the flooring was contaminated.

The special education students also removed asbestos floor tiles during a remodeling project of the home economics room. Tests showed the tiles contained between 9 percent and 11 percent asbestos.

The students' parents sued the Bridger School District in 2005, and the lawsuit was settled in November when the district agreed to pay each student $251,000.

Information from: Billings Gazette, http://www.billingsgazette.com (Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.) APNP 08-22-08 0418CDT | save this article / add to your favorites list