CALAIS – Bail conditions were modified and probable cause hearings were set for two Washington County high school basketball stars who last month were charged with burglary. The pair made their first appearances in 4th District Court on Tuesday.

Morgan Drew, 18, of Calais, a senior at Calais High School, and Sara Snider, 18, of Milbridge, the would-be valedictorian of Narraguagus High School Class of 2002, were charged with burglary in March after they allegedly broke into the Princeton home of Jeanne Graceffa and stole cash and personal household items, including electronics. Some of the items later were recovered.

The two have been free on bail since their arrest March 14. After Snider was charged, her school announced that she would not serve as valedictorian.

The two women would have been members of the McDonald’s East-West Senior All Stars girls basketball team, but they withdrew, saying they believed their presence would have been a distraction from the game.

The two friends, who have been ordered by the court to have no contact with each other, were subdued as they stood before Judge John Romei.

When the judge asked first one and then the other if they understood the charges, each responded, “Yes, sir.” Snider stood with her hands clenched.

The judge told them that the charge against them is a Class B crime that carries a sentence of up to 10 years in prison.

Bail conditions, including that the women have no contact with each other, also require that they live with their parents and continue to attend school. They are not allowed to use or possess alcohol or drugs, and must submit to police searches and testing for drugs and alcohol.

On Tuesday, Assistant District Attorney Paul Cavanaugh asked the judge to amend the bail to include no contact with Jeanne Graceffa or her family.

A probable cause hearing has been set for June 18.

Outside the courthouse, Randy Morrison of Calais, who described himself as a friend of the Drews, criticized the media coverage of the case. “They are 18-year-old girls. They made a mistake. I just feel bad for them. They broke the law. I don’t understand that,” he said.

“As soon as they were done, you guys left the courtroom. There’s other people in there,” he said of the other defendants who appeared in court Tuesday.

Drew’s attorney, David Mitchell of Calais, said he would not comment directly on the case, but he did say he had not discussed a plea agreement with the District Attorney’s Office. “[The case] just started today. She [Drew] made her initial appearance,” he said. “She is doing well. She is a good student, a good athlete, and she has a bright future. We are going to deal with these allegations when the time comes, but it’s too early now,” he said.

Cavanaugh also declined to comment on the case. “These 18-year-old girls are getting an inordinate amount of attention from the media. There are other people here today [in court] who’ve done worse things and more frequent things, so I don’t want to feed the media circus around these two, because I don’t think they deserve it. I think they’ve both already paid a public social consequence for being arrested. It may or may not be appropriate, but it is something I want to factor into comments I make,” he said.

Cavanaugh also addressed another charge against Drew. The Baileyville Police Department on March 11 summoned the woman on a charge of attempted theft by deception after she allegedly tried to cash a canceled check at the Woodland Food Mart in Baileyville on March 7. Cavanaugh said his office did not plan to prosecute the woman on that charge. He would not comment on why.

He added that an incident involving an alleged attempt by Snider to sneak the potent prescription narcotic drug OxyContin across the border from Canada into the United States also was under review. In March, the Washington County Sheriff’s Department was called to investigate the incident. “I don’t think we’ve made a decision yet,” Cavanaugh said.