Suspect Arrested in Bus Driver Attack

A week ago, we saw the disturbing video of a man attacking a Milwaukee County bus driver.

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports on the suspect's arrest.

A 17-year-old boy has been arrested in connection with last week's videotaped beating of a Milwaukee County bus driver, Sheriff David A. Clarke Jr. said during a news conference Tuesday afternoon.

Clarke said the boy told investigators he attacked the driver as a way of "displaying his anger" after another driver refused to allow to him to use a fraudulent transfer pass earlier in the day.

A citizen who had seen video of the beating on the news called the sheriff's office Friday night and said she had seen the boy a number of times outside a nearby public high school, Clarke said.

After investigators showed the video to an administrator at the school, Clarke said, the administrator identified the boy as a former student.

Investigators then staked out the boy's north side house Monday and arrested him during a traffic stop about 1 p.m., Clarke said.

The boy had told a number of people about the beating and confessed to investigators, Clarke said.

The sheriff's office is awaiting the results of tests on forensic evidence from the bus, including palm prints, that appear to link the boy to the attack, Clarke said.

Video of the beating is also being enhanced, a process that could take about two weeks, Clarke said.

Tests of the evidence and enhancement of the video are needed to corroborate the boy's confession, Clarke said.

"I will caution you that this investigation is ongoing and subject to change depending on what the physical evidence ultimately shows," Clarke said. "We continue to aggressively pursue all leads and new information as it comes in."

If we are to believe the boy's confession, he picked a bus driver to attack because he wanted to "display his anger" over a different bus driver's refusal to let him use a fraudulent transfer.

There are so many troubling aspects to this story.

The alleged attacker, this young guy, was completely out of control.

A 17-year-old violently pummels a bus driver because he's angry at another driver.

What did the other driver do that prompted the 17-year-old to react
the way he did? Nothing.

The driver didn't let the thug board his bus with a fake transfer. That's worthy of a beating?

I can't understand the mindset of a guy flipping out because a driver wouldn't allow him to get on his bus fraudulently.

The citizen who called the sheriff's office with information on the attacker after seeing the video on the news should be commended for getting involved. That doesn't happen often enough. The school administrator who identified the boy as a former student also assisted in getting the guy arrested.

That's the way it should work. If these people hadn't cooperated, it's possible the suspect wouldn't have been apprehended yet, if ever.

That 17-year-old is a danger to society.

This guy is the anti-Rosa Parks -- no self-control, no sense of right and wrong, no self-respect and no respect for others, no dignity.
_________________

The victim, bus driver Earl, was interviewed by Carole Meekins of TMJ4 yesterday.

"I just want to thank the community for getting involved," the driver said.

That brutal attack has meant a tough few days for Earl and Wanda. The couple, who did not want us to use their last name, says they feel relieved someone's been arrested.

"I was happy," Earl said.

"Relief in that sense for my husband and for the community," Wanda explained.

As parents, the horrible beating may have shaken their sense of security, not their sense of compassion.

"That hurts even more because (for) the young fellows out here life has so much to offer them," Earl said.

"It was heartbreaking to know that was a young person, to know there are other ways to deal with that," Wanda said.

As bad as the attack was, Earl knows God was with him.

"Amen," Earl said.

"It could have been a whole lot worse," Wanda added.

Previously, Earl spoke with Mike Miller of WISN:

The driver told 12 News reporter Mike Miller that he's shaken up but that he wants to get back behind the wheel.

...Friday, that driver showed no visible signs of the assault. Earl, who doesn't want to use his last name, told Miller he was just trying to keep his passengers safe.

"Oh, absolutely. Yes. You've got a fear factor, but it doesn't take over. At that time, it didn't take over," Earl said.

With eight screaming passengers on board, Earl managed to fend off blows from the masked attacker at nearly 40 mph until he swerved into a tree and the man ran off.

"He did a tremendous job. The average person couldn't have done that -- probably would have covered up and lost control of the bus," Milwaukee County Sheriff David Clarke said.

The sheriff said the bus could easily have crashed into a store or a gas station. But Earl does not consider himself a hero.

"No. Somehow, I wish I could have done more. But at the time when it happens, it's split second and you do the best you can with it," Earl said. "I'm just happy that it ended the way it did, with no major injuries."

Earl said he was shaken up by the attack. But he said most people are "decent," and he's ready to get back in the driver's seat.

I admire Earl for still believing in the decency of most people.

I don't think I'd want to get back in the driver's seat.