L.A. thugs headed to Obama inauguration? Not quite.

Heard the rumor about teenage criminals from L.A. getting tickets to Obama's inauguration? Well, it turns out largely to be untrue.

Talk radio and the blogosphere have been abuzz over a column by Mary Mitchell in the Sunday Chicago Sun-Times alleging that several youth offenders sentenced to a Los Angeles County probation camp in connection with a home invasion robbery were invited to attend the presidential inauguration in Washington next month.

"Home invading thugs invited to inauguration," said one blog headline. "Hope, Change and Juvenile delinquents," read another.

Kerri Webb, spokeswoman for the Los Angeles County Probation Department said the column was "a complete exaggeration," and the resulting controversy has been "blown out of proportion."

Webb said that the Los Angeles County Office of Education had contacted her agency earlier this year to discuss sending nine juveniles in the probation system to the inaugural. The juveniles were chosen for their scholastic achievement within the corrections education system.

But probation chief Robert Taylor said the department would not pay for the trip, which would require probation officers to accompany the youths.

"There were a lot of issues. There were the funds, security issues and logistics," Webb said. "We had closed the door on it. It was resolved."

Not exactly.

The Sun-Times column prompted a storm of criticism and launched many more diatribes on the Web and over the airwaves.

Webb said Mitchell exaggerated the criminal activity of the youths.

She said that none of the youngsters who would have been selected for the Washington trip had committed serious crimes.

--Andrew Blankstein