A total of seven Georgia students, ages 5 to 14, have been arrested and charged for allegedly beating down a fellow seven-year-old in a bus traveling to school. The bus driver, who allegedly didn't stop the trip or report the incident, was also arrested following the incident.
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According to the
Bulloch County Sheriff's Office (BCSO), the incident took place on Friday, April 18. During an early morning trip to Mattie Lively Elementary School, police allege that seven Georgia students attacked a seven-year-old student. Video camera footage allowed authorities to identify the students, leading them to all seven being charged with battery.The bus driver, Joey Edwin Jackson, 70, was also arrested in connection with the incident. According to Captain Todd Hutchens, as reported by WTOC, the driver failed to stop the bus or even report the incident. It took five days before the BCSO was made aware of the incident.
"The bus driver did not pull over," Hutchens told the outlet. "The bus driver did not call the bus garage to say, 'Hey, I got an incident on the bus, please send help.' He continued to drive to the school."
As a result, Jackson was charged with second-degree cruelty to children and failure to report child abuse. The BCSO and the Bulloch County Board of Education confirmed that he is no longer employed by the school system.
Further Details
Captain Hutchens clarified that the seven-year-old did not suffer major physical injuries during a press conference.
"The child did sustain some bruising," Hutchens said. "The child was checked out by the nursing staff of one of the schools, did not require any hospitalization or anything like that but did have some bruising. When you look at cruelty to children it also involves not only physical injury, but mental injury as well."
Regarding the seven children facing charges, Hutchens said that they hold responsibility. All seven will face their battery charges in juvenile court.
"They hold responsibility just like an adult, just like a 14-year-old," Hutchens added, as per WSAV. "They know better than to start jumping on a child and striking that child with a hand or a fist or a book or those types of things."
Currently, there are no plans to charge the children's parents. However, according to Hutchens, that remains a possibility.
