Law enforcement officers have found no evidence indicating that the bus driver who assaulted two Black children on a school bus in Morgan County, Georgia, was racially motivated. As previously reported, in a now-viral video that has been shared all over social media, on September 9, James O’Neil instructed a six-year-old boy to sit at the back of the bus, even though younger children are usually told to sit in front while older students sit toward the back.
When the boy refused to follow O’Neil’s order, he decided to take matters into his own hands by shoving the minor to the back, which prompted his 10-year-old sister to interfere by yelling, “Stop pushing my brother!” O’Neil retaliated by telling her to “shut your mouth” as he also began to push her and retorted, “What a pain in the neck you guys are. Get back there.”
GEORGIA: Morgan County school bus driver – James O’Neil – fired and arrested after pushing siblings – 6 and 10-year-olds – for refusing to sit at the back of the bus. Parents say the front of the bus is usually reserved for children this age. @CBS46 pic.twitter.com/DUbgf3xdJz
— shon gables (@shongables) September 19, 2022
An investigation has been conducted, which has already seen O’Neil fired from his job, but parents — and social media — believe he deserves to face bigger consequences. Well, cops have already ruled out that the incident could have been racially motivated, meaning that when O’Neil stands trial, he can’t be considered to be a racist — at least not by the court. O’Neil has been charged with two counts of simple battery and was booked in the Morgan County Detention Center, where he stayed for one night before posting bond.
The children’s parents, Blake and Nequania “Nene” Carter, have since spoken out about the disturbing events that took place on the bus, insisting that they strongly believe the bus driver had intentionally targeted their kids because of their skin color.
“My son is terrified, he was scared, he called for his older sister as you could hear he was crying… he was horrified. You’re supposed to be protecting him,” Nene expressed, per Sis2Sis. “I don’t know why he told them to sit in the back of the bus because the high schoolers sit back there, and normally the primaries sit right behind the bus driver.”
This bus driver’s behavior is racist and disgraceful!!!! Keep on tweeting it. He put his hands on the child, it’s assault. Fire him!!!! https://t.co/6H8WH6MklY
— Very Mary Resister (@verymarys27) September 21, 2022
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Meanwhile, an official statement made by a spokesperson of the school said, “The Morgan County Charter School System was made aware of an incident Friday afternoon involving a bus driver and students.
“We took immediate action, including notifying the Morgan County Sheriff’s Office, who we are working with during the investigation. We cannot share further details or comment due to this being a personnel issue; however, the driver was terminated.”