ST. LOUIS (KMOV/Gray News) – A school bus driver in St. Louis was charged Monday after officials said he punched two students on the ride home.
The St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office has charged 51-year-old Lamar Murray with two counts of first-degree endangering the welfare of a child.
According to a probable cause statement from Florissant police, Murray was a substitute driver for the Hazelwood School District and was driving students home after school when he became angry at several kids at the back of the bus.
Police said he stopped the bus in the right-hand lane and went to confront the students.
Murray is accused of punching one of the students twice in the face. He allegedly held another student face down in a bus seat, punched him, scratched him and pulled his hair.
The alleged assault was captured on the bus video surveillance system, but it doesn’t show what led up to the incident.
According to the statement, officers arrived at the scene and found numerous students standing on the side of the road. Both victims had visible injuries, police said.
Murray was arrested Friday and made an initial court appearance Monday. He remains in the St. Louis County Jail on a $75,000 bond and is set to appear for a bond reduction hearing on May 12.
