COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) – Parents say a Columbus elementary school failed to notice their 6-year-old being sexually assaulted on her school bus and then defied parental wishes and left her alone in the snow.
The girl's stepmother, who is not being named to protect the child, told NBC4 they decided to remove their daughter from the district after their instructions were ignored. The district said the situation was not handled properly, and it is ensuring it would not happen again.
On Jan. 8, the bus driver’s aide for Valley View Elementary pulled a parent aside, telling him his stepdaughter had been touched inappropriately on the bus by another student. Police records show Franklin County Children's Services referred the case to Columbus police, and the parents also filed a complaint.
According to police records, this had allegedly been going on “since it was warm outside.” Due to the ages of the children, police said they were unable to investigate for the purposes of prosecuting, and the case was closed.
CCS Executive Director of Communications Tyler Carter said the bus aide was informed about the incident by a student and the children were separated on the bus. Both the driver and aide said this was the first time they had seen or heard of this happening. The stepmother said the aide is supposed to monitor the students, and the parents were disturbed this had not been caught sooner.
“The very next day, I drove to Valley View Elementary furious,” she said. “I demanded to speak to the principal. It turns out, the very next day, the principal had no idea of the incidents that occurred the day prior. I made sure that Child Protective Services would be notified to make sure the other child is safe as well. The principal apologized and sent me on my way.”
Ohio Statehouse bill to ban LGBTQ+ discrimination loses Republican supportCarter said that on that day, the principal asked about what had happened and the bus aide provided details, confirming that it had been reported to a supervisor.
On Jan. 10, the child’s mother reached the school and told them the 6-year-old was not to ride the bus anymore out of concern for her safety. The parents told the school they would pick her up and drop her off, which the school said they understood.
The next school day, Jan. 13, the girl’s stepfather arrived to pick her up after school. To his horror, he was told she had been put on the bus. He asked them to call the bus and turn around, but they said they didn't have the authority. He began "frantically" calling the other parents hoping it was a mistake.
“Unfortunately, our daughter not only was put on the bus she was sexually assaulted on, but the bus driver dropped our 6-year-old daughter off without a parent present at the front of their apartment complex," she said.
Police get involved after women picking up litter stumbled across these itemsThe stepmother said the school had it in writing that she was not to be dropped off alone and that the driver did not call the parents. Instead, she said the 6-year-old had to walk a quarter-mile through snow with no sidewalk over a bridge to her home. She said her daughter could have been kidnapped, hit by a car or fallen into one of two ponds she had to cross.
“As part of the investigation, concerns were also addressed regarding a student being released from the bus without a parent present,” Carter said. “The driver and aide recognized this as an oversight and have assured that proper procedures will be strictly followed moving forward.”
The stepmother said after that, she and the child’s mother went to Valley View and withdrew her. She said the principal told her she understood why and that there was no excuse for what happened.
Now, the stepmother said her daughter is scared, confused and in therapy as she adjusts to her school in a different district. The parents said they hoped other parents who heard this story made sure their kids could talk to them without worrying about getting in trouble.
“All we can do is be there for her and try to help her through these events," she said. "We find that it’s necessary to make this story public to keep other children safe.”
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