Bus Driver Suspended In Incident Involving Child

NEW ROADS, La. (AP) — The Pointe Coupee Parish School Board has suspended a school bus driver for six months without pay and strip him of his tenure rights for leaving a 5-year-old student on his bus for several hours three months ago.

The Advocate reports the board voted Thursday to suspend Roger Dixon, who has been employed by the school system for more than 20 years, rather than fire him.

The unanimous vote to suspend Dixon came after a motion to fire him failed in a 5-3 vote.

Dixon has been suspended from the school system since Dec. 16 after a Rosenwald Elementary pre-kindergarten student was left sleeping in the back of Dixon's bus after he parked it that morning.