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Video of small child physically restrained on Detroit school bus
The video is difficult to watch - a woman forcibly restraining a small child on a school bus and at one point she appears to be sitting on him.
DETROIT (FOX 2) - The video is difficult to watch - a woman forcibly restraining a small child on a school bus and at one point she appears to be sitting on him.
She can also be seen apparently striking him several times. The whole time he is wailing and trying to fight back on the phone video.
It happened Wednesday in Detroit. The child is a student at Fisher Magnet Lower Academy. The person who recorded the video was a 6th grader at Fisher Magnet Middle Academy.
FOX 2 spoke with her father by phone.
"She was scared, scared out her mind," he said. "She came home in a panic, she was breathing a little hard (saying) 'Dad, I can’t believe what I was seeing, I can’t believe this happened.'"
A second woman briefly got involved — also attempting to restrain the child.
FOX 2 contacted Detroit Public Schools Community District. It released a statement, saying:
"The District is aware of the incident and video circulating through social media. Both the bus driver (employee of the bus company) and attendant (district employee) have been removed from servicing DPSCD students and schools pending an investigation regarding the incident."
FOX 2 reached out to all three companies that DPSCD contracts with for bus service, but no phone calls were returned by deadline.
Meanwhile, the father of the girl who recorded the video spoke with her principal about the incident and showed him the video in question.
"He seemed pretty concerned so kudos to him, because he did seem pretty concerned about the situation," the girl's father said.
While it’s unclear what led up to the incident.
"I believe this is the first time she got physical with a student, but it’s not the first time she verbally said disrespectful words to the students - it's not the first time," he said.
The girl’s father is commending her for being brave enough to record the incident. He says she isn't sure who the child is or how he is doing.
"I’m very proud of her," he said. "I’ve been telling her that since yesterday. Without the video who knows how this situation would have gone."