Crime & Safety
Bus Driver Charged With Assault for Kicking Special Needs Student
The 8-year-old girl with autism suffered a broken ankle when the bus driver kicked her down the steps of a school bus.
A former school bus driver faces an aggravated child abuse charge for kicking an 8-year-old special needs student down the stairs of the school bus, according to the state Attorney's Office.
Stephanie Wilkerson, 41, who was fired from her job as a Hillsborough County school bus driver after the incident, was shown on surveillance video kicking the girl off the vehicle.
The child suffered a broken ankle in the incident.
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The Hillsborough County State Attorney's Office released the video.
The child was being driven to Tampa Bay Boulevard Elementary School on Sept. 28, 2012, when the incident occurred. The bus driver was fired in January 2013.
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According to the State Attorney's Office, the student was about to exit the bus, when the driver told her to wait for her turn.
The girl pushed the bus driver, according to the Tampa Bay Times.
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