Crime and K‑12 Education

Authorities in Sumter County, Florida have charged school bus driver Yvonne Hampton with 29 counts of child neglect and reckless driving after a CSX train clipped the rear corner of her bus last week while 29 students and an aide were on board, an incident the superintendent says came within about six inches of a catastrophe. No injuries were reported, but an arrest affidavit says on‑board video shows Hampton chose to cross the tracks after the railroad warning system activated, then stopped with part of the bus still over the crossing as a car ahead blocked her path. Hampton told police she did not stop on the tracks and was forced to keep moving once the gates and lights activated, while a 12‑year‑old passenger told ABC’s 'Good Morning America' that students were yelling 'Train!' as the bus remained on the tracks. Superintendent Logan Brown said Hampton, a district employee since 2015, 'stepped down in place of termination' and stressed that anyone who jeopardizes families’ trust in safe student transport will not work for the district. Hampton appeared in court Tuesday, where bond was set at $30,000, and the case is already fueling fresh concern online about school‑bus driver training and rail‑crossing protocols after a series of high‑profile bus crashes nationwide.