Photo of school bus stopped near Everett Ford, provided by a MySaline reader.
UPDATE/3:00 PM, DEC 16, 2021
Benton Police Department officers responded to the intersection of Boone and the South Service Road around 4:30 p.m. Wednesday in reference to a disturbance involving a Bryant School District bus driver following reports that the driver was driving recklessly and not allowing children off the bus.
The driver, Juanita Criswell, age 54, of Benton, left the scene in a separate bus and BNPD officers conducted a traffic stop soon after, where it was determined she would be charged with Driving While Intoxicated – Drugs and Endangering the Welfare of a Minor.
Information from Saline County Detention Center states that the charges include Driving while intoxicated and Endangering the welfare of a minor. Click image to enlarge.
Criswell is being held at the Saline County Jail until a scheduled bond hearing on Friday. The investigation remains ongoing.
Anyone with information about this incident is encouraged to contact the Benton Police Department at 501-778-1171 or 501-315-TIPS. Anonymous tips may also be sent via text to 847411 with the keyword BENTONPD in the body of the message or via the official Benton Police Department app available on iTunes and Google Play.
PREVIOUSLY/2:00PM DEC 16, 2021
The Bryant School District released a statement to parents after an incident involving a bus driver’s arrest on Wednesday afternoon.
December 16, 2021, Bryant AR —
Bus 70 (Route 9) was involved in an incident on the December 15 afternoon route. While we do not know all the details involved, we wanted to share with you as much information as we can at this time.
The driver, who had not driven this route previously, chose to pull over on the shoulder of the road at Boone Road and Winchester Drive (near Everett Ford), not a normal part of the route. There was not an accident with another vehicle, nor did the bus hit an object. No students were injured. At this time, we are not sure why the bus stopped.
While the driver had the bus pulled over, several students contacted their parents to meet them. Some older students got off the bus and voluntarily walked home down Boone Road to Heritage Farms. Other parents met their children at the location.
Another driver who was familiar with the route was dispatched to the location. The driver who arrived on the scene got on the bus and took the remaining students home.
After the new driver left with the students, the driver who had stopped with the students headed back to the Transportation Building with the empty bus. This driver was pulled over and taken into custody by the Benton Police Department a short distance from the location where the bus had been stopped.
We are conducting our own investigation and are fully cooperating with the Benton Police Department. Student safety is our highest priority and we will thoroughly investigate this matter.
Since this is a personnel matter, no additional details can be shared.