HISD bus drivers who say they don't feel safe speak out in support of a driver who was arrested

HOUSTON - Some Houston ISD school bus drivers are speaking out in support of a bus driver who was arrested earlier this month.

The HISD driver was charged with injury to a child for allegedly punching a student in the head and kicking that 13-year-old boy in his face, but some drivers who are speaking today say the driver was actually being taunted and bullied by the students.

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"There's no safety for the drivers and this is an ongoing problem," says one driver. 

The veteran HISD school bus drivers we spoke with want to keep their jobs. So they don't want to reveal their identity. They say before HISD bus driver Zamoderc Odom was arrested on April 12, they say the driver was being bullied by students on his bus route from Pershing Middle School. 

"Throwing shoes or whatever at him."

"He was attacked, and he isn't the only bus driver that's been attacked on that route. Management has had to follow the bus," says another driver. 

The union representing HISD bus drivers is commenting on a video that is now circulating. 

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"The kids clearly attacked the driver," says HESP President Wretha Thomas.

The HISD bus drivers supporting Odom say the footage shows the students attacking Odom on the bus the day the driver was arrested, leaving him with a black eye.

"It's horrible. I felt pretty angry. I felt pretty angry because he was defending a whole bus, and no one came to his defense." 

'You could hear the kids in the background screaming at him, yelling at him, cursing at him. You could hear all that over the radio."

"He was saying please, please send help. Send the police. Send the firetruck. Send HISD police. Just send everybody, send everybody. I need help," says an HISD school bus driver. 

"There's been multiple kids to punch the bus drivers from behind in their heads while they're driving. It's a wonder a whole bus load of kids haven't been killed that way," says one driver. 

"These kids have jumped on this driver before, and the driver had requested HISD take him off that particular route," Thomas says. 

According to court documents, an officer viewed the school bus surveillance video before placing the bus driver under arrest and charging him with injury to a 13-year-old child on the bus. 

"I talked to HISD and I asked them to release that video to me," Thomas says.  

HISD said, "The safety and security of our students is always our top priority. The district is aware of the increase in instances of disruptive behavior by students during school transportation. Currently, bus drivers are instructed to record student behavior and submit reports to the campus, which handles disciplinary action. However, Transportation and Campus Administration are currently collaborating to revise this process for the upcoming school year."