By Valerie Chinn, vchinn@fox41.com
Louisville, KY (WDRB-TV) A 12-year-old student is arrested after police say she and her mom assaulted a JCPS bus driver.
Police have issued a warrant for the mother 30-year-old Chesica White. She tells Fox 41 she plans to surrender to police on Friday. White says, "I regret everything I done. I didn't mean to hurt anyone. But one of my children got hurt in the process too."
In the meantime, a bus driver is recovering with serious injuries, and another student was also injured.
Rick Caple, the JCPS Transportation Director, says, "There had been issue of behavior on the bus. Last week, the guardian had talked about her child being bullied on the bus."
JCPS says when White tried to take matters into her own hands, bus driver Johnetta Anderson and a student got hurt. It was all caught on tape, after JCPS started using a bus with a camera that day. But JCPS is not releasing the video.
Bus 0242 was carrying 19 Stopher Elementary students from the school in Louisville's East End and stopped at 24th and Broadway, near the Unseld Day Care on Tuesday afternoon.
At the bus stop, around 4:30 p.m., children were trying to get off the bus while mother Chesica White and her 12-year-old daughter got onto the bus. JCPS says White blamed the bus driver for her 7-year-old son being bullied. White says her son has been bullied on the bus all school year long and the bus driver hasn't done enough to stop the problem.
Caple says, "The driver got out of her seat and tried to prevent them from coming up on the bus. There was some pushing and shoving. Both individuals grabbed her around the ankles and dragged her out the bus and onto the pavement."
The bus driver was able to get back on the bus and call police. She's now recovering at home with serious injuries.
Caple says, "She has some bruises. She has some possibly severe leg injuries, possibly the hamstring has been pulled away from the bone. She can barely walk at this point."
JCPS says Anderson has been with the district since 2008. She's expected to be off the job for several weeks as she recovers.
JCPS says a five or six year old who was also trying to get off the bus at the time was caught in the middle of the scuffle and has a busted lip and cuts on the face, but is fine. That child was headed to the daycare.
The 12-year-old Carrithers Middle School student is charged with two counts of assault and 19 counts of wanton endangerment. She's now at the Jefferson County Youth Center.
Police are now looking for White. JCPS says, "Her child was involved in the fracas as well. He was throwing punches and being punched just like several other children on the bus."
JCPS is reminding parents that if there are problems on the bus to communicate with the principal, counselors, and bus supervisors.
Caple says, "There can be things the principal can do, do extra homework or things. I think principal is working on that. Hopefully things will get better on the bus."
JCPS say only 50 of the 930 buses have video cameras. Cameras cost $1500 to $2,000 each.
