Pennsylvania school bus driver accused of threatening kids, blasting heat on warm summer day
A school bus driver in Pennsylvania has been accused of threatening students and turning up the heat on the bus as a way of trying to punish bad behavior.
The Sugarcreek Borough Police Department in Venango County said they received multiple complaints from parents on Wednesday who said their kids came off their school bus "crying and extremely sweaty."
Police said the kids told the parents that their bus driver, who police identified as Harvey Sliker, 75, of Utica, Pennsylvania, told the kids to close their windows on the bus and "turned the heater on full blast."
Harvey allegedly told the kids, "I am going to cook you all," before turning up the heat.
Police said that officers were able to determine that with the outside temperature, which was 74 degrees on Wednesday, along with the heat on the bus turned all the way up, the temperatures inside the bus could have reached 95 to 100 degrees.
According to police, students said that Harvey told them he was going to bring a paddle for them the next day.
"These actions and statements placed multiple children from the ages 5-12 years old in fear of serious bodily injury," the police department said.
Police said they worked closely with the Valley Grove Elementary School and have filed simple assault and reckless endangerment charges against Harvey, who they say has been told he cannot enter any school properties or functions where school activities occur.
The Valley Grove School District provided a comment to KDKA-TV, which you can read below.
"Our district was made aware of an incident on the bus Wednesday afternoon involving the driver's conduct and interactions with students. The complaint included using the heat on the bus as a disciplinary action. We immediately contacted the transportation contractor responsible for that route to address the situation. The contractor has assured us that the individual will no longer be driving for them, and a new driver began Thursday morning.
We take the safety of our students and school community very seriously, and we appreciate the parents who reached out to bring this matter to our attention, as well as the attention of the Sugarcreek Borough Police Department, who are also working with the district to resolve the issue."