BARTOW COUNTY, Ga. — A Bartow County parent whose son was on a school bus when the driver was arrested last week is urging the district to do more to protect students.
Hannah Boerger said her 15-year-old called her Friday afternoon from his bus, worried about the driver’s behavior.
“What I saw on FaceTime was that she was weaving in and out of traffic, and several cars had to swerve to avoid hitting her,” Boerger told Brittany Kleinpeter.
She said students were shouting to get the driver’s attention, but the woman appeared unresponsive.
“She just looked very monotone. She didn’t react to what they were saying. They offered help, and she was just non-responsive,” Boerger recalled.
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Boerger said she could hear other children on the bus calling their parents, too. Not long after, she watched as a sheriff’s deputy pulled the bus over.
“She gets out of the bus and instantly puts her hands behind her back before any testing or conversation,” Boerger said.
Her husband, Lawrence, said he received a photo of the driver being taken into custody while he was at work.
“She tells me the whole situation, and I’m like, wait a minute – these people are supposed to be in charge of watching our children and getting them home safe from school,” he said.
Boerger was eventually able to pick up her son where the bus had been stopped along U.S. 411.
“As soon as my son was finally released to me, he said, ‘Mom, I wish I could drive.’ He just felt helpless,” she said.
Boerger, a graduate of the Bartow County School District, said she hopes the incident pushes leaders to be more proactive.
“I think they need to be more aware of their drivers when they pull up. They’re part of the school system, and they need to make sure everything is okay before those buses leave the school,” she said.
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The circumstances of the arrest have not yet been released. Channel 2 Action News has reached out to the Bartow County Sheriff’s Office and Bartow County School District for more details.
The district sent the following message to impacted families:
Good Afternoon Bartow County School System Family, Late this afternoon, an incident involving your student’s substitute bus driver resulted in their immediate removal from the assigned route. No injuries were reported. Impacted families were promptly notified, and alternative transportation arrangements were made to ensure student safety. The Bartow County Sheriff’s Office is conducting a thorough investigation, and the Bartow County School System is also performing an internal review. The safety and well-being of our students remain our highest priority. While we are limited in what we can share at this time, we appreciate your understanding and will provide updates as appropriate.
The school district said they’re providing counseling services for students, if they were affected by the incident.
The district also said they have rigorous hiring standards for drivers, including substitutes, that they keep to so the safety of students is ensured.
That process includes employment applications and interviews, pre-employment drug testing, motor vehicle record reviews, criminal background screening, CDL bus endorsement and physical examination, training and skills assessments, ongoing, randomized drug and alcohol testing and reference checks.
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