BULLOCH COUNTY, Ga. — A school bus driver is off the job after a child was attacked during his route, Georgia deputies said.
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On Wednesday, Bulloch County Student Resource Officer Dep. Julian Brown, who is assigned to William James Middle School, received a report about an attack on a child during the morning bus route on April 18.
The sheriff’s office said it was later confirmed that seven students, ages five through 14, initiated a physical fight on a 7-year-old student during the morning bus route to the Mattie Lively Elementary School.
Authorities said the attack happened while the bus was traveling on Highway 301 North in Statesboro.
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Investigators said after reviewing bus camera footage, the seven students were identified and charged with battery.
Also, investigators said the bus driver, 70-year-old Joey Edwin Jackson, was arrested and charged with cruelty to children in the second degree and failure to report child abuse.
According to the sheriff’s office, Jackson is no longer employed by the Board of Education.
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As for the students, all seven have been suspended from their respective schools. Their arrest information has been sent to the Department of Juvenile Justice for further court proceedings.
The Board of Education, Sgt. Bubba Revell and each school involved continue to investigate the incident.
Anyone with information can call Sgt. Revell at 912-486-5926.
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