BATH — After one of his drivers was charged with assault for allegedly pushing a 12-year-old Woolwich student as she exited the bus last week, the president of Bath Bus Service said he is considering increasing security measures.
“While I cannot discuss specifics, the bus driver will not be driving RSU 1 students,” RSU1 Superintendent Patrick Manuel wrote in an email to The Times Record. “We are cooperating with the Sheriff’s Office, and we will continue to work closely with Bath Bus Service to ensure the safe transportation of students going forward.”
He did not respond Monday to additional questions about how the incident will be dealt with by the school district.
Bath Bus Service is a private bus company that has a contract to transport students for Regional School Unit 1, which services Bath, Woolwich, Arrowsic and Phippsburg.
Bill Reed, the president of Bath Bus Service, said he will work with Manuel “any way he needs.”
“I’m definitely going to be advocating for stricter policies and at the very least,” Johnston said. “The bus service needs to have some sort of procedure and actually show that they’re taking complaints seriously.”
The school bus wasn’t equipped with a camera but the student’s mother, Mary Johnston, said the incident was recorded on one of her home security cameras. The student was not injured.
Johnston said other parents have come forward on her social media post about the incident and claimed they’ve had similar experiences, complaints which Reed said he hadn’t heard.
“We train (drivers) and help them get their licenses if they want to become a school bus driver,” Reed said. “Any of these parents are more than welcome to apply for a school bus license if they would like.”
Reed said he will probably install more cameras in buses, of which he has about 30. While some do have cameras, others don’t, including the spare bus Rouillard was driving last Thursday. He couldn’t say Monday how many buses do have cameras.
The Sagadahoc County Sheriff’s Office on Friday summonsed the driver, 62-year-old Michael Rouillard of West Bath, for Class D assault, a crime punishable by up to 364 days incarceration and a $2,000 fine. He is scheduled to appear in West Bath District Court on May 12.
Rouillard’s bus had a very active crowd on it, Reed said, and Rouillard had spoken to the student once that day already.
Johnston said her daughter admitted to eating Cheetos on the bus, which isn’t allowed, but put them away when spoken to.
Reed said the bus service does not offer training to help cope with rowdy students or those with behavioral issues.
“You just do what you can and do the best you can,” Reed said.
Chief Deputy Brett Strout said Saturday the student “was slow in getting off the bus on this day, and he pushed her on the backpack and as he pushed, she tripped down the stairs.”
Reed said he Rouillard will not drive a bus again but will wait for the court case to run its course before determining the future of his employment. Reed said he’s never had a disciplinary issue with Rouillard, who also drives an oil truck for the company.
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