Mom accuses bus driver of deliberately closing the door on her son, 14, and dragging him down street

The mother of a biracial student who was dragged down the street by a school bus in Utah has settled a civil rights lawsuit for $62,500. The incident happened at West Point Junior High School in Davis County, Utah, in February as students were disembarking the bus.

The mother of a biracial student who was dragged down the street by a school bus in Utah has settled a civil rights lawsuit for $62,500.

The incident happened at West Point Junior High School in Davis County, Utah, in February as students were disembarking the bus.

Security camera footage shows the bus doors closing on the boy's backpack before the bus moves away, leaving him hanging precariously as he is dragged 175 feet down the street.

Mother Brenda Mayes accused driver John Naisbitt of being racist, and said he had intentionally closed the bus door on her son after a history of showing 'racial animus and discriminatory conduct' to students of mixed race.

The boy's family settled with Davis School District for $62,500, Mayes' attorney Robert Sykes told reporters. 

The 14-year-old boy (wearing the red backpack in the image above) was dragged by a school bus in front of his junior high school in suburban Utah this past February

The 14-year-old boy (wearing the red backpack in the image above) was dragged by a school bus in front of his junior high school in suburban Utah this past February

The doors can be seen closing on his backpack before the bus moves away

The doors can be seen closing on his backpack before the bus moves away

The lawsuit also alleged that the Naisbitt had previously harassed other mixed race students, and said there were three reports on file dating back to September 2017.

Naisbitt denied being racist, and said the incident involving Mayes' son was an accident.

'I didn't see him in there,' Naisbitt told CNN affiliate KSTU. 'If I had, I would have stopped.' He went on to claim that the boy staged the incident after he disciplined his brother.

Several days after the incident, Naisbitt retired. 

When asked about the allegations by a KSTU reporter, he insisted he was 'not at all' racist, adding: 'Look at my dog. He's as black as could be.'

The boy's mother, Brenda Mayes, filed a lawsuit on her son's behalf, alleging that Naisbitt was racist and that the school district failed to discipline him

The boy's mother, Brenda Mayes, filed a lawsuit on her son's behalf, alleging that Naisbitt was racist and that the school district failed to discipline him

Naisbitt denied being racist, telling a reporter: 'Look at my dog. He's as black as could be'

Naisbitt denied being racist, telling a reporter: 'Look at my dog. He's as black as could be'

Brenda Mayes walks with her sons following a news conference in May

Brenda Mayes walks with her sons following a news conference in May

RELATED ARTICLES

Share this article

Share

Following the settlement, Mayes' attorney Robert Sykes said: 'This is a fair settlement and the family is happy about it. There was clearly a racist act, and this is a horrible thing that the bus driver did.'

He added: 'This school district needs to take some action to reign in this bad conduct, hopefully they will take take some action.'

In a statement, district spokeswoman Shauna Lund said, 'We take these matters very seriously and do everything we can to protect students.'

In May, the child's mother spoke with reporters during a news conference and said, ‘I couldn’t even comprehend how it could happen.I was blown away. I was angry. I was glad he didn’t kill him... I was glad he didn’t go under the wheel.’ 

‘The driver knew what he was doing,' she added. 

ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7pa3IpbCmmZmhe6S7ja6iaKaVrMBwrdGtoJyklWKEc4OVcmpsZ32kum6twpysrJ2jYq%2B2v4ydqaKulad6pbHLopmeqpGpsq3FjJyjqKuZo7RusM6oqWarn6N6coCMnaman5eeu6h50q2pnp2kY7W1ucs%3D

 Share!