Surveillance video from a Hillsborough County school bus parked outside Caminiti Exceptional School shows a 10-year-old special-needs student being hit again and again while the bus driver appears to laugh, according to investigators. The footage, reviewed after a witness reported what they saw, led to the late-January arrests of two Hillsborough County Public Schools employees and has disability advocates once again sounding alarms over how little protection some children really have.
In a news release from the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office, deputies said they opened a child abuse investigation on Nov. 14 after a witness reported seeing a bus aide strike the child. Detectives reviewing the bus surveillance say the 10-year-old victim, described as having autism and ADHD and as minimally verbal, was seen being abused on at least 14 separate days. According to the sheriff's office, 79-year-old bus aide Juanita Wright was arrested on 14 counts of child abuse, and 62-year-old driver Tonya Rice-Constant was arrested on a charge of failure to report child abuse on Jan. 26.
"This case goes far beyond abuse. It reveals a level of cruelty that is deeply disturbing," Sheriff Chad Chronister said in the release, calling the behavior "an inexcusable betrayal of trust." Investigators say they are still reviewing video from the bus to determine whether any other students were targeted.
Hillsborough County Public Schools said in a statement to FOX 13 that the bus attendant was pulled from duty in November and has since been terminated, and that the driver retired when the investigation started. The district told the outlet it trains transportation staff on student care and on their responsibility to report concerns, and that it is cooperating with law enforcement. Officials did not offer additional personnel details beyond that statement.
Advocates Renew Push For Classroom Cameras
Disability advocates say the video underscores how vulnerable non-speaking and minimally verbal children can be, and they are using the case to push again for cameras in special education classrooms, sources told Tampa Bay 28. Stacey Hoaglund, a local disability advocate, told the outlet that lawmakers are once more weighing measures to expand camera use in self-contained classrooms and that the Hillsborough investigation has added fresh urgency to those proposals this legislative session.
What The Video Shows
According to investigators and local coverage, the bus surveillance shows Wright yanking on the child's restraint system, hitting him, pulling his hair and mocking him, while the driver appears to laugh and at times mock the child as well. Deputies told reporters that teachers had noticed bruises on the student and a sharp change in his behavior when it was time to get on the bus, which helped prompt the video review. Another student on the bus reportedly witnessed some of the incidents, according to local reporting.
The sheriff's office says the probe remains active, with detectives continuing to comb through footage and follow up on tips. Anyone who believes their child may also have been a victim is urged to contact the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office, Local 10 reports. Local outlets report that both suspects were released on bond while the investigation moves forward.
Legal Implications
Wright faces 14 counts of child abuse, and Rice-Constant is charged with one count of failure to report child abuse, according to sheriff's public information and local reporting. The arrests and charges will move through the county court system as investigators and prosecutors assess the evidence and decide whether to pursue additional counts, several local outlets have reported. Authorities say any additional victims or newly uncovered incidents will be referred to the State Attorney's Office as the investigation continues, according to reporting by West Orlando News and other local outlets.
