Bus driver allegedly slaps 6-yr.-old
Published 9:46am Friday, October 5, 2012By Jodelle Greiner, Fairmont Sentinel
Read the story on FairmontSentinel.com.
BLUE EARTH — A 72-year-old school bus driver has been charged with fifth-degree assault following an incident with a 6-year-old on a Blue Earth Area bus.
Jane Elizabeth Brooks of Blue Earth is scheduled to appear in Faribault County Court on Tuesday. She faces a maximum sentence of 90 days in jail and a $1,000 fine.
According to the court complaint, on Sept. 14, as Brooks’ bus was starting its afternoon route to return riders to their homes, the 6-year-old boy began hitting a smaller child on the head with his book bag and a football. On the bus video, the smaller child is heard crying as a result of being hit by the 6-year-old.
The complaint says Brooks stopped the bus and asked the 6-year-old to move to a different seat, directly behind the driver. The boy refused to move and Brooks had to physically move him. The boy was resistant to Brooks’ efforts to move him.
After being moved, the boy began kicking the children across the aisle, according to the complaint. The other riders in the front of the bus reported this behavior to Brooks and she again stopped the bus.
Brooks asked some of the older riders to sit with the boy to serve as baby-sitter for him. The older riders were not willing to do so, the complaint states.
Brooks then radioed the school and requested assistance. School staff were not able to provide direct assistance but did instruct Brooks to move the other children away from the boy.
According to the complaint, as Brooks was moving the other children away from the 6-year-old, the boy spit on the children in the seat behind him. Brooks told the boy not to spit on the other children. The boy spit again and Brooks slapped him across the face.
Other juvenile riders reported that following the slap, the 6-year-old was bleeding. One of the riders came to check on the boy and told Brooks, in his opinion, that she did not need to slap the 6-year-old. Brooks reportedly responded, “Well, maybe that’s what he needed.”
Sounds like this boy is a bully, he needs something, but I don’t agree with slapping him in the face. My sister drove school bus, when the kids would misbehave she would pull over and sit there until the kids got the naughty ones to quit. Worked for her, she didn’t even have to say anything.
So, the kid bullied another kid by hitting him/her with his book bag AND a football. Ever been hit by a football? They are hard and can hurt.
Then, when he was being moved, he resisted.
Once moved he began kicking the kids next to him.
Finally, he was spitting on other kids, and when told to quit, yet he CONTINUED!
Whilst I do not agree with beating children, I do agree a bit of capital punishment should be in store for this youngster.
I only hope the parents of the other kids on the bus come to the defense of this driver. She was not given any assistance by the school when she called. Basically told to remove the other kids. If the bus was full, impossible. The article doesn’t say, but it appeared to happen shortly after leaving the school meaning probably a fuller bus. So she was left to her own.
Maybe a slap across the face was a bit much, but it seems to have worked. I noticed this brat didn’t do anything else on the remainder of the ride? At least nothing that made the news.
For the kid who stated “she shouldn’t have done that.” Is this one of the same kids that would not help her by sitting next to this brat?
I would also like to know what disciplinary action this little bully received. Maybe a ban from the bus for the school year?
If he isn’t calibrated and soon, he WILL become a bigger problem for other kids and society. He is a young bully that will become full-fledged if not stopped now. Where is the anti-bullying laws at now?
This bus driver did everything right, up until the slap. The bus company is to blame for this escalating. If they couldn’t send someone out, they should have called the police to assist her. The bus driver’s job is to drive and keep the kids safe, not to separate a bully from his victims. The parents have a lot of work to do with this child, and they better start now. If this kid is this rotten at 6 years old, give him a few years and you’ll have someone no one can control. Leave the bus driver alone, I’m sure she feels bad enough over what happened. Ban the kid from the bus and let the parents deal with him. Next time a bus driver has a problem with someone like this, just call the police and let them take care of the child, it’ll save the driver the heartache she is probably feeling now.
wow, sounds like the bus driver was following all the right steps, looks like school staff did not respond correctly. The child should be suspended and the parents should discipline their child and take over the responsibility of getting him to school. I would be very upset parent that there is a child on the bus bullying the other children very very bad. Hitting using objects as a weapon and spitting on other children is by far more serious offense to the other children. I would ask the bus drivers charges be dismissed as a lesser disciplinary warning would be more appropriate.