BY JANE PRENDERGAST
The Cincinnati Enquirer
INDEPENDENCE -- A fight on a school bus ended with eight students ducking shots from a BB gun and a 13-year-old boy facing charges.
The boy faces nine counts of wanton endangerment, filed Tuesday by Independence police. He claimed to police that he was defending himself against another student who had threatened him on the bus. "The kids could see the kid in front of his house pumping the gun," said Detective Tony Lucas. "They hit the floor, and they said they could hear the shots pinging against the side of the bus." The incident happened after school Sept. 2 along Colonial Drive. The bus, driven by Eldon Petty, had dropped the boy off at his house, headed down the street and turned around, Detective Lucas said. The shooting started as the bus passed the house again.
It was the third time in less than a year that Kenton County school officials were faced with problems on one of their buses. Last fall, a driver was assaulted by a student's mother; two buses, also in Independence, had their windows shot out.
No one was injured in the most recent incident, not known publicly until police reported that they filed charges in juvenile court. The driver used his bus radio to call for help, then drove to a nearby intersection to wait for police, Detective Lucas said.
Officer Kevin Gill responded, but the boy wouldn't answer the door. The officer waited nearby and approached the boy when he did come out. The boy admitted firing the gun and said he'd had a fight with another boy on the bus, the detective said. But he also told police another story, Detective Lucas said -- that he was firing at a telephone pole and the shots ricocheted.
The boy was not arrested after the charges were filed, but the detective said a warrant could still be issued. Otherwise, he will be cited to court.
That decision had not been made as of Wednesday afternoon. Ken Easterling, the county's director of juvenile services, was not yet aware of the case. Wanton endangerment is a felony, he said, but jail time would not be a possible penalty because of the boy's age.
The boy was not identified because he is a juvenile.
The bus was not damaged. Tommy Bach, who supervises busing for the Kenton County schools, said siding on buses is made to withstand strikes by things such as BB pellets.
"I feel very confident that the children are safe on the school buses," he said. Buses are "good safe transportation for the children and we're always looking to make sure it stays that way." Any action by the school, such as a suspension, was unknown Wednesday.
Andrea Tortora contributed.
