Father Furious After School Van Driver Allegedly Abandons Bullied Boy With Special Needs On Rural Roadside
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BROWNSVILLE (KDKA) -- A Fayette County father is demanding a school district take action after he says a school van driver abandoned his son, who is bipolar and has attention deficit disorder, on the side the road miles from their home.
For single dad Rich Christopher, his three children are his world. In his brood is son, Richard III, and what happened to the 11-year-old has his dad angry.
Christopher says it all started when his son was allegedly bullied by a 16-year-old while on a school van.
"The 16-year-old wanted the front seat, my son said no, so the 16-year-old physically removed my son from the van," said Christopher.
The incident occurred on near the small Fayette County community of Rows Run. Christopher says what van driver allegedly did next was inexcusable.
"Drives off, leaving him," said Christopher.
Fifteen miles from home, alone in the fog and 31 degree temperatures, the little boy with special needs had what his family calls an angel stop to help him.
"A lady found him, called me, put him in her car to stay warm till I got there," Christopher said.
Christopher called the Brownsville Area School District and the driver's employer. But he says the actions they've taken are inadequate.
"This driver was not, he was just reassigned, so now he's not driving my son, he's moved on to someone else's," said Christopher.
KDKA reached out to the bus company for comment on the driver's status. We are awaiting a reply.
Christopher says what allegedly occurred has impacted his boy's emotional wellbeing.
"He's not really talking about it much, but I'm sure it did affect him, and it's going to affect him for a while," said Christopher. "Everybody needs to know what happened."