SCHOOL BUS CRASH REPORTS 2007

School Bus Incident Infuriates Parents
February 15, 2007

About 30 Byram Middle School students driven to Jackson police precinct Tuesday.

Parents were still outraged Wednesday, a day after nearly 30 Byram Middle School students were shipped to a Jackson police precinct after a disturbance on their bus Tuesday afternoon.

For nearly two hours, parents, including Patrice Creel, panicked when their children had not come home.

The students were passengers on a Hinds County School District bus operated by Laidlaw Education Services. According to police, the bus broke down on Gary Road, and some students became unruly while waiting for another bus.

"There were all types of things that went through my head," said Creel, the mother of a 12-year-old, seventh-grade boy. "It was dark out. I didn't know if someone had picked him up or maybe there was an accident."

Creel's son told her that some of the children on the bus had been acting up for several days and that the bus driver had had enough.

Neither police nor school officials would say what happened on the bus. Hinds County sheriff's deputies were called to the scene, and later Jackson police were called because the incident occurred inside city limits.

Police officials then had all the children on the bus transported to Precinct 1 on Cooper Road, Jackson police spokesman Cmdr. Lee Vance said.

The children called their parents from the precinct. Vance said the students sat in a waiting area until their parents picked them up.

Hinds County Superintendent Stephen Handley said no policies were violated Tuesday. He said Laidlaw has the option to either call the police or call the school district when there is a disturbance on a bus. After police get involved, it is up to an officer as to what to do with the students, he said.

Handley would not say whether any children were disciplined. He said school officials will review the school bus surveillance video to determine what actions to take.

"All of our school buses have video cameras, and we will review the tapes and take action according to our district policies," Handley said.

Getting police involved with disruptions on the school buses is a common practice for Laidlaw drivers, Laidlaw branch manager Rick Hendricks said.

"When they are fighting or threatening each other on the bus, there's nothing the driver can do. We can't put our hand on them," Hendricks said. "Normally if it's just a couple of students, the driver will call the supervisor to come finish the route with him. If it gets really bad, the only thing we can do is call the police."

Hendricks said he did not know how severe Tuesday's incident was but said if several students have been unruly over a period of time, a police officer might take them to a police station to get the attention of the students and the parents.

"It's a serious thing," he said. "If something happens to a kid on that bus, that's a major lawsuit. So calling law enforcement is all we have."

Creel said she and other parents will attend the next school board meeting in March. She said she feels policies on informing parents about delays should be changed.

"You'd like to think that your children would be safe on a school bus," she said. "But to have your child missing for two hours is a bit much. There is nothing worse than not knowing where your child is."

By Nicklaus Lovelady

back to Crash Reports 2007

top