Prosecutor: No Charges Planned In Bus Video Case
GALESBURG (WWJ/AP) - A prosecutor says no charges are planned in southwestern Michigan after a video posted online showed a 7-year-old boy being slammed into a school bus window by a female transportation employee.
Kalamazoo County Prosecutor Jeff Fink made the announcement Thursday, saying the employee, Heidi Mullin, was acting in self-defense.
Auxilio Services, a company hired to handle student transportation, and the school district said Mullin was fired after the Oct. 10 incident.
Fink said a review found witnesses reported the child threatened the employee and put a coat over her head. He said the child had a history of behavioral issues on the bus that officials were trying to handle.
A video taken by a student and posted online shows the 7-year-old being slammed into the side of the bus by Mullin. The 5-second video shows a boy being lifted from a seat and slammed into a window with a loud bang. Mullin yells "Sit down!" In the background, another student says, "Holy crap."
Police investigated the incident, as well Mullin's claim that the boy threatened her.
Ed Dollin, president of Auxilio Services, said Mullin is "extremely remorseful."
Dollin said Mullin was the fourth employee to ride the bus since reports of bad behavior by students in late September. He said the incident was preceded by the boy screaming, throwing his book bag, sticking his head out of the window and threatening the driver.
According to Dollin, Mullin decided to sit next to the boy to try to defuse the situation and was grabbed around the neck. That's when she "panicked" and slammed him against the interior wall of the bus.
Dollin said his Cincinnati-based company started working in Galesburg-Augusta, 50 miles southeast of Grand Rapids, on Aug. 1.
MORE: Video Shows School Bus Supervisor 'Slamming' Boy Into Window
Bus Company: Employee Who Roughed Up Kid Was Wrong
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