Missouri Personal Injury Lawyer Blog

An unusual story published on kmov.com details the story of a 17 year old who was injured in his school bus. Despite the fact that most school bus accidents that result in injuries involve collisions, this one involved assault. The student was physically attacked by both a 14-year-old and a 15-year-old onboard a bus heading to Belleville West High School on the morning of September 14, 2009. The two alleged attackers have been suspended from school for causing the victim to suffer bruises and cuts on his face; he was fortunate not to have suffered a more serious injury.

This bus attack has prompted the concern of many parents regarding the safety of their children when traveling to and from school on buses. The transportation company, First Student, which monitors buses for Belleville West and East, stated that the driver followed company policy when the attacks started. Until the case of the violent bus attack is resolved, the driver is on leave.

Although this incident did not involve a collision, bus accidents in Missouri and Illinois are responsible for many injuries on an annual basis, and in the most severe of cases, wrongful death. Drivers have the responsibility to exercise extreme caution when operating their vehicle, not only for their own safety, but for the safety of others on the road as well. In examining this specific bus incident, a collision could have resulted if the driver had been distracted by the attack on the bus and thus unable to pull over safely; however, fortunately, this was not the case.