NORTHBRIDGE, Mass., May 14 (UPI) -- Authorities in Northbridge, Mass., say a bus driver may face criminal charges for leaving a 3-year-old child preschooler alone on a bus for more than six hours.
Police said the unidentified Vendetti Bus Co. driver was fired after authorities learned he overlooked the child on the bus and parked it in a lot, The Boston Globe said Thursday.
The driver found the child, who was unharmed, after returning to the lot more than six hours later, Northbridge Superintendent Susan M. Gorky said.
"We are very thankful and blessed that the student was not injured," Gorky said. "He was taken to a pediatrician by his family. He has resumed his normal school routines."
Northbridge Police Chief Walter J. Warchol told the Globe the driver would likely be charged with reckless endangerment of a child, which carries a maximum jail sentence of 2 ½ years.
"The bus driver's responsible for the actions on the bus," Warchol said. "He's responsible for making sure that everybody's off."
