By Daymond Steer
THE CONWAY DAILY SUN
OVELL, Maine — An MSAD 72 bus driver is facing charges for allegedly striking a parent with the door of the bus, according to the Oxford County Sheriff’s Office, which said 74-year-old Shirley Danforth of Stoneham has been charged with assault and driving to endanger.
Emily Poitras, a Lovell mom, was allegedly struck by the door of the bus driven by Danforth at around 1:30 p.m. Wednesday, deputies said.
Poitras and Danforth apparently got into an argument over Poitras’ 13-year-old daughter’s use of a cellphone. Poitras posted security cam footage of the incident on Facebook.
“This is how your kids are being treated on the bus for MSAD 72,” she wrote on Facebook. “I will not tolerate this and I can’t believe this even happened today. I reported it to the school and the police as well.
“(My daughter) messaged me asking me to meet her at the bus stop because the bus driver pulled over and told her she has four assault charges and isn’t afraid of a fifth all because (the daughter) was using her phone! UNREAL!” Poitras wrote; however, a check with Oxford County showed that Danforth does not have a criminal record.
Poitras told WGME the incident was “scary” and she was lucky the bus door didn’t knock her over.
A press release from the Oxford County Sheriff’s Office said that the mother of an MSAD 72 student was waiting for her daughter to be dropped off at a home on Main Street in Lovell.
“The confrontation was a result of the bus driver confronting students on the bus over cellphone usage while being transported on the bus,” the press release said.
“The student sent messages to her mother who in turn confronted the driver at the discharge stop. The mother and driver exchanged words, and as the bus driver began to drive away, the open bus doors struck the mother who was standing between the open doors.”
The video of the exchange shows the bus pulling up and Poitras asking Danforth if there has been a problem.
Danforth replies that the children “have been told and told they do not use their cellphones.”
The daughter said they were told that once and she was “listening to music.”
At that point, Danforth accuses the girl of passing her phone around and is heard yelling, “Don’t lie to me!”
Poitras asks the driver not to yell at at the children, and Danforth replies, “I yell any way I want! You do not tell me how to run my bus!”
At that point, as Danforth drives off she allegedly hits Poitras with the door, and Poitras yells out, “I’m recording you, you psycho!”
MSAD 72 includes Molly Ockett School in Fryeburg; New Suncook in Lovell; and Brownfield Denmark Elementary in Denmark, Maine. Fryeburg Academy has an exclusive contract with MSAD 72 to educate all district students in grades nine-12.
According to MSAD 72’s handbook, students may use electronic devices on school buses so long as they are not used to bully or be used in an an unethical or illegal manner. Use of an electronic device’s camera is prohibited on the bus and at school unless approved by a supervising staff member.
MSAD 72 Schoold Superintendent Jay Robinson gave the Sun this statement Friday:
“As part of our investigation, I have been in contact with the parent, the investigating officer, our attorney, and we will continue our investigation of the matter, including interviewing students who were present on the bus at the time of the incident.
“Unfortunately social media travels faster than our ability to conduct a thorough investigation, but let it suffice to say that we strongly condemn any action that puts students, parents, or staff at risk and will take appropriate measures when we have concluded a full investigation.”
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