Featured Image Credit: Douglas County School District
Topics: US News
Claire Reid
A school bus driver from Colorado is facing 30 child abuse charges after he was filmed braking hard, sending kids flying.
Brian Fitzgerald, 61, worked as a bus driver for the Douglas County School District and was driving around 30 students home from Castle Rock Elementary on March 1 when the incident occurred. You can see what happened in the video below:
In the footage, Fitzgerald can be heard telling the youngsters to stay in their seats before asking: “You guys want to see how dangerous that is?"
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Fitzgerald then seemingly slams on the brakes while driving at around nine miles per hour, sending the kids sprawling.
He then adds: “Did you get that? That's why you need to be in your seat. Turn around and sit down properly."
The kids can be then be heard questioning why Fitzgerald would do that, while others check in on their pals.
One kid whips out their phone and makes a call to someone, telling the person on the other end of the line: "The bus driver hit the brakes, and somebody got hurt so badly and is, like, bleeding on the cheek."
Further footage shows Fitzgerald explaining to a parent that he’s a substitute driver and that he was simply ‘trying to get them to get in their seats’.
"I was coming to a stop and I hit the brakes hard because they weren't, they were not listening. So, I'm sorry if she got hurt," he said.
A misdemeanour complaint has since been filed against Fitzgerald that includes 29 charges of child abuse with no injury and one count of child abuse with bodily injuries.
He is scheduled to appear in court on May 12.
In the wake of the incident, Fitzgerald wrote a letter of apology to the school board, which has been seen by ABC News.
In the letter, he said: "I am sincerely sorry for my choice of actions today in my efforts of training students.
"I am still 100 percent responsible for my actions in trying to both educate and control students on the bus. Being a new driver, I did not make the best decision and if I were able to redo what I did I would rethink my decisions."
He has since been fired from the job.
Douglas County School District (DCSD) spokesperson, Paula Hans said in a statement: "The video is incredibly difficult to watch. Riding a bus to and from school should be a happy, enjoyable experience for students. The behavior and actions of this bus driver are completely unacceptable.
"We are so grateful to the parents and the principal who reported this incident, allowing us to take swift action and ensure this driver was never again allowed behind the wheel of a DCSD bus."