Blair Oaks bus driver accused of assaulting student, Cole County Sheriff’s Office says

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The Cole County Sheriff’s Office wrote in a Thursday press release that a bus driver was accused of assaulting a student on a bus on Wednesday morning.

The release says a Blair Oaks school resource officer was called by the district’s superintendent “in reference to an alleged assault that occurred on a school bus. The assault was allegedly committed on a bus, by a bus driver, against a juvenile student.”

The bus driver was not named, though the sheriff’s office said in the release that they are accused of fourth-degree assault.

The district had no comment on the matter on Thursday. Superintendent Ben Meldrum said the district uses Durham Transportation Services for its bus services. ABC 17 News has reached out to Cole County Prosecutor Locke Thompson.

A spokesperson with the bus company told ABC 17 News in an email that the driver was put on leave before being fired.

“We can confirm that we received a report regarding an incident involving our driver and a student and are cooperating fully with law enforcement on their investigation,” Summit School Services spokeswoman Anna Lam wrote. “We take the safety of our students very seriously, and upon learning of the incident, placed the driver on administrative leave and then terminated the employment of the driver."

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