Parents in Dallas, Georgia, were stunned last week when a school bus driver refused to let their children off at their regular stop and sped off with screaming children still inside. A shocking TikTok video shows a female bus driver in a verbal confrontation with another woman.
Things eventually degenerate into physical violence, with the driver shutting the door and taking off with the elementary school students still aboard. Parents and children alike are crying and screaming at the driver to stop in the video.
The incident occurred on January 19 at a bus stop in the Paulding County School District, according to the Atlanta Black Star. Both Dallas authorities and the school district are investigating the episode that many say put their children in danger, leaving them questioning how it happened.
The driver was reportedly trying to follow bus protocol.
Parents of students at Allgood Elementary School were waiting at their children's regular bus stop when the incident occurred. The substitute bus driver was reportedly looking for yellow tags on the children's backpacks before letting them off the bus. Each bag should have had a yellow tag, indicating their correct stop.
According to the Atlanta Black Star, the regular bus driver reportedly allowed students off the bus without the proper tag, which the substitute was not doing, likely trying to keep the children safe. This evidently became frustrating to all parties.
The bus driver was adamant about checking tags.
Because the driver wanted to ensure the children had the proper tags, departure from the bus was very slow.
The Paulding County School District said the drop-office process "broke down," according to WSB-TV.
"A backup resulted, and the situation soon escalated as parents waited at the stop for their students," the district noted in a statement obtained by the news outlet.
Parents at the bus stop just wanted their children, and a confrontation ensued.
A series of TikToks documents what happens, beginning with a verbal disagreement between parents and the bus driver. The driver gets close to the woman and begins to yell, refusing to let children off the bus. Soon a parent is seen slapping the driver's face. This enrages the driver, who shuts the door and takes off with the children inside.
Children and parents can be heard screaming, terrified of what might coming next. A parent yells, "You don't do that! Are you nuts? Hey! Hey!"
Parent Samantha Lee told the Atlanta Black Star that the driver hit first. She also said her child was terrified and thought she was being kidnapped.
"She takes her left hand and assaults the parent right here on her neck," Lee said. "She closes the doors, and it was kind of like, 'Okay, I can't tame you guys, so I'll take your kids now. And she had a smirk on her face and drove away with our kids."
A second clip from the bus shows a hazardous scene.
Another video on TikTok clearly shows children jumping out of the bus windows at the next stop, trying to get away from the bus and the driver. The emergency door opens in the back, and children race to safety. The video shows the bus seemingly blocking traffic and causing an issue at the intersection.
The reaction on social media has been mixed.
The Atlanta Black Star shared a video of the TikToks, and opinions are mixed. Some people believe the driver was doing her job to protect the children.
"Mom needed ID to pick up her child is a standard that should be maintained," one person commented.
"First mistake, she drove off and the children were standing up, and she's about to catch a couple of charges," someone else disagreed.
Some think that everyone is guilty.
"Being a driver myself, every one handled that wrong. Part of the video is missing. No parent should have gotten on the bus, but also the driver should have immediately contacted dispatch," one person wrote. "Dispatch has every child's name, parents name and address. This all could have been handled better…smh."
The school district reacted to the situation quickly.
Paulding County Uncensored obtained a copy of a statement from the Paulding County School District. The district confirmed the driver's suspension and an investigation by the Dallas Police Department.
"Ultimately, school district personnel requested the assistance of the Dallas Police Department. The school district is investigating the issue as a personnel matter, and the driver has been suspended pending an internal investigation," the statement reads. "After law enforcement arrived and students for that stop had deboarded the bus, a supervisor assisted in the transportation of the remaining students. Thankfully, all students eventually arrived home safely. This situation remains under investigation by the Dallas Police Department."
