Too harsh of a punishment?

One of the hardest things about being a parent is disciplining your children. There were times I had to take something away from my child or ground them when a special event was coming up, and it killed me to do it. But I still think they learned something. They are not perfect kids, but I think they have turned out pretty good. Anyway, this leads me to a story I heard on the radio this week. I know there may be more to this story than what was told but I was blown away none the less. It seems this 12 year old girl (barely 12) had sent some, lets say, revealing pictures of herself over the internet. She had used a friends computer. She lived with her father, her parents being seperated. Because of her inappropriate behavior the father would not sign a permission slip for the girl to attend an upcoming field trip at her school. This was something she said "was really important to her". But this was her punishment for what she did. Well it seems this child went to her mothers attorney (I don't know if the mother was involved, but I imagine she was) and turned around and sued the father. You'll never believe this, but she WON! She got to go on her field trip because it was "really important" to her. Now, what kind of a message is that sending to this child? I'm sorry, but I'm on the father's side of this. Am I the only one that feels this way? Let me know what you think.