A horrifying case of alleged abuse on a Bloom-Vernon Elementary School bus has come to light, but according to one concerned relative, school officials and law enforcement have done little to help the victims—and even less to acknowledge what happened.
“The only thing they said to me was, ‘Don’t tell nobody,’” the family member revealed to SCDN. “It was either the school or the sheriff, I can’t remember which. But they said not to talk about it. They just want to cover up what happened.”
The shocking allegations? A teenager riding the same school bus as elementary students—many with special needs—was sexually assaulting younger children while riding on the bus and using threats to keep them silent.
Authorities Knew—But Did Nothing?
According to the relative, the school never informed her of the assaults. Instead, she learned the truth from the Scioto County Sheriff’s Office, which contacted her after interviewing the bus driver about suspicious behavior involving the teen and another child. “The school never told me,” she said. “It was the sheriff’s office that told me after a bus driver informed them the boy sat next to my child. But even then, they never followed up to make sure my child got help.”
She claims her young family member, who was just six or seven years old at the time, endured the assaults over the course of two years while riding the bus. The children on board were being transported to an alternative school for behavioral challenges, and the teen accused of the assaults was allowed to sit with younger, more vulnerable kids.
Why Was No One Watching?
The woman questions why a bus driver or school staff didn’t notice anything unusual sooner. When she asked how such abuse could go undetected, she was allegedly told, “The seats are kind of high.” While she doesn’t necessarily blame the driver, she does blame the school for failing to provide an aide or another adult to monitor the children on the bus. “These are little kids, some with special needs, and they put a teenager with them—no supervision, no one watching. How did they think that was okay?”
Broken Promises and No Justice for Victims
The family member says a Scioto County Sheriff’s detective initially assured her that a forensic specialist trained to interview child victims would be brought in to speak with her young relative. But that never happened. “I never heard anything back,” she said. “It was just two phone calls and nothing else. They never followed through. They never took him to be interviewed. I still don’t know how bad it got, because I’m not comfortable asking him all of it.” She says she was also promised that the victims **would not have to testify in court, but beyond the removal of the **teen from school and placement in a juvenile facility, she has seen no action taken to support the children affected.
Cover-Up or Negligence?
The family member believes the school and law enforcement wanted the situation to disappear quietly, instead of ensuring the victims received the care and justice they deserve. “The main thing is, they never got back to me. They never helped my child. It was like they just wanted to make it go away.” For now, the family is left with more questions than answers, and a child who endured abuse with no proper support or justice.
