Returned home crying and scared: 8-year-old with special needs from Lod was forgotten on a bus
A 75-year-old driver and a 45-year-old attendant are accused of leaving the bus at the end of the route without ensuring all children had disembarked and without scanning the vehicle. According to the indictment, the child was left alone and arrived home on his own about two hours later.
An 8-year-old child with special needs from Lod was left alone on a bus after the driver and the attendant finished the route and left the scene, without scanning the vehicle and without noticing that the child was still sitting in the back seat. This is according to an indictment filed today, Thursday, against the two.
According to the indictment, only about two hours later was the child able to get off the bus and reach his home on his own, while upset, crying, and scared.
An indictment was filed against the bus driver, a 75-year-old from Lod, and the attendant, a 45-year-old from Lod, for the offense of neglecting children or other persons under their care. The attendant served in her role as an escort for children with disabilities in organized transport on behalf of the Lod Municipality.
The incident occurred after the end of the school day. Around 15:35, a substitute teacher at the school in Lod put the child and three other children with special needs onto the bus.
According to the indictment, during the trip, the driver and the attendant dropped the children off at their homes, "without ensuring that a responsible adult was waiting to receive them at each of the drop-off points, and without informing or coordinating this with their parents." At that time, the child remained sitting in the back seat of the bus.
Towards the end of the route, the attendant got off the bus and left the scene. After the bus reached the final point, the driver parked the vehicle at the entrance to Yizre'eli Street in Lod, got off, and left as well.
It is alleged in the indictment that "none of the defendants took the minor off the bus, nor did they scan the bus as required at the end of the trip to ensure that no child was left inside." According to the prosecution, by doing so, the two violated the duty imposed upon them as part of their role.
As a result, the child was left alone on the bus after the trip ended, without supervision or care. According to the indictment, before 17:30 and around that time, he managed to reach his home on his own, without any supervision or care, "while upset, crying, and scared."
The prosecution claims that by virtue of their role, the driver and the attendant were obligated to look after the needs of the minor who was under their care, but "did not provide him with essential life needs to the extent necessary to maintain his safety and health."
