Story posted Friday, March 12, 2010
Meet On Bus Driver Incident Monday
By RICHARD MAYER Assistant Managing Editor
Mt. Prospect Elementary School Dist. 57 board members will meet Monday, Mar. 15, at Lincoln Middle School to discuss the recent arrest of a district bus driver on charges of driving under the influence of alcohol.
The driver was pulled over on Tuesday by Mt. Prospect police while returning a bus to a district lot after transporting 50 kids home from Lions Park Elementary School, according to police.
"We decided to call a special meeting late yesterday (Thursday) afternoon to have an opportunity for the board to meet as a group and discuss it," said Dist. 57 Board President Joseph Leane. "Obviously, board members are informed of the incident and have been updated. We also wanted to provide an opportunity for the community to be involved as well as early as possible."
Leane said since the issue surfaced on Wednesday, Mar. 10, he has received numerous phone calls and emails form parents and local residents.
"It's a full spectrum," said Leane. "There are parents outraged, which I completely understand. I am just as outraged myself. I also received support from people appreciating our efforts on communicating as promptly as we did."
Leane said he and other board members are preparing for a large group of people to attend Monday's meeting. During that meeting, Leane said the board will share information they have with the community and then allow people to ask questions.
"We will try and answer those questions that evening if we can," said Leane.
On Tuesday, Mar. 9 tat approximately 3:45 p.m., Mt. Prospect police reported receiving a telephone call from Dist. 57 Transportation Coordinator Vincente Ramirez that a bus driver, later identified as 54-year-old Betty A. Burden of Mt. Prospect, was operating a school bus allegedly intoxicated.
According to police, Ramirez said a co-worker of Burden's reported to him that she had smelled alcohol on Burden's breath at around 2:30 p.m.
Police located the then empty bus traveling northbound on River Road, just north of Euclid Avenue, and performed an investigatory traffic stop.
According to police, officers immediately smelled alcohol on Burden's breath. Police also said Burden admitted to having consumed an alcoholic beverage during the course of the day and later failed all field sobriety tests administered to her. She was placed under arrest for allegedly driving under the influence of alcohol.
Burden was transported to the Mt. Prospect Police Dept. where she consented to a breath alcohol test, which registered her blood alcohol concentration at 0.226, police said. The legal limit in Illinois is .08.
Leane emphasized no action will take place Monday night to terminate Burden.
Supt. Dr. Elaine Aumiller is expected to recommend Burden's termination at the next board of education meeting on Thursday, Mar. 18.
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