Posted: Jan 11, 2012 8:46 PM by Irina Cates (KPAX News)
Updated: Jan 12, 2012 6:28 AM
HAMILTON- A food fight on a Hamilton school bus Wednesday morning apparently ended up much more than that, because Hamilton Police officers say that's when a high school student pulled a knife on two young girls.
The mother of an 11-year-old girl says her daughter and her 12-year-old friend ended up getting into some sort of a fight on the bus with a 15-year-old boy.
"Words were said and drinks were thrown and poured on her and her friend and then the boy I guess pulled a knife out. I don't think he opened it, but he pulled it out and said I'm going to kill you," says Shauna Connelly, the mother of the 11-year-old girl.
Hamilton Police officers responded to the school just after 8 a.m. for a report of two middle school girls who were threatened on a bus with a knife. Officers say the boy who threatened them never actually unfolded the knife and there are conflicting stories about what he actually said when he made the threat.
But Shauna's brother Brandon Connelly says this isn't the first time a knife ended up on a Hamilton school bus. It also happened last year with his daughter, who was a first grader at the time.
"The last one with my daughter was where there was a knife pulled out in the bus, with some kids behind her and she mentioned something. The school bus driver screamed at her, told her to sit down."
His daughter wasn't threatened in this incident and the father says he's pleased how the school handled that situation. However, both he and his sister want to see changes on the school buses.
"I want them to at least get cameras so that way we know what's going on, on the bus," Shauna said.
"There's no privacy policy needed. Let's put on the cameras and secure our kids," Brandon said.
But while these parents want cameras, Hamilton Schools Superintendent Duby Santee says others do not.
"We've had a number of people say we don't need big brother on the school bus-that sort of thing. So that's an issue, that's a big issue when you get into that. As a school district we're certainly not against that, but that would have to involve a lot of discussion."
Majestic Bus Service rents out school buses to Ravalli County Schools and the company also provides the drivers.
The owner of the bus service says in both incidents involving the knives, the bus drivers didn't know about the weapons, until the students who had them were off the bus.
He also says his bus drivers are trained for crisis situations and in both cases they acted appropriately by immediately reporting the incidents.
Santee says the Hamilton School District has a zero-tolerance policy for weapons. He says even though it depends on the situation, disciplinary actions are taken against students who bring weapons.
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