Man charged after punching, cracking school bus window in road rage incident

COLUMBUS, Ohio ( WCMH ) – A 25-year-old man is facing multiple charges after law enforcement officials claim he punched and broke the window of a school bus carrying more than 20 children in a fit of road rage.

On April 23, deputies were dispatched to the area of Sturbridge Road and Beacon Hill Road in Prairie Township after receiving a call around 3:30 p.m. of a road rage incident. A South-Western City Schools bus was traveling north on Sturbridge Road, attempting to turn east onto Beacon Hill Road, when a car drove out in front of the bus, according to Franklin County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Lowell Wood.

The bus driver let the car go and proceeded to make a turn, when the car backed up to make a U-turn, almost hitting the bus, Wood said. The bus driver sounded her horn, then the man made a U-turn and pulled up next to the bus.

“He stopped right beside the bus on the driver side window, got out, yelled a couple things I believe to some of the students in the windows, and then began striking the bus with his fists,” Wood said.

The bus driver’s window was originally open, but she closed it as the man approached the bus, Wood said. The man struck the driver-side school bus window resulting in it cracking, then drove off. The bus driver and 22 students were not injured during the incident.

“[The bus driver] felt that if she didn’t close the window that he might try to come through the window so she’s pretty upset and obviously the kids were upset,” Wood said.

The suspect was located and arrested two days after the incident. He is charged with menacing, criminal damaging, disorderly conduct, reckless operation of a motor vehicle, and parking a vehicle in the roadway.

“We work very close with our administrators and trustees [in Prairie Township] along with our schools, so a lot of the deputies took it personal,” Wood said. “School should be a safe place and that starts from the time the kids get on the bus.”

The man allegedly responsible for the incident pleaded not guilty to the misdemeanor charges on Friday and made bail. The charges come after a 2024 Forbes Advisor study claimed violent road rage incidents are on the rise nationwide, and ranked Ohio among the top 10 states in America with the most confrontational drivers.

When the sheriff’s office receives a call about road rage, it typically involves an incident on the freeway or street racing, according to Wood. He said this is the first time he witnessed a school bus being at the center of a road rage incident.

“I’ve never been personally dispatched to a school bus involving this kind of nature,” Wood said. “I’ve been on the road approximately 10 years and that’s the first I’ve seen of this.”

Wood said the sheriff’s office will continue to actively work to keep kids in the community safe, and he hopes the arrest shows students and parents the sheriff’s office has their back.

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