by Al Della Fave
Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office
TOMS RIVER-This past week the Ocean County Prosecutor Office Facebook Page posted information on an incident in Lakewood where a 9 year old Lakewood boy was struck by a motorist passing a stopped school bus. Almost immediately after making the post, I noticed a good number of comments by local folks citing that they have seen many OC drivers doing this on a regular basis. One post went so far as to identify a specific corner in Brick where they see it happen most every morning, which I immediately passed on to Brick PD.
My message: Those drivers choosing to blatantly pass stopped school buses present a tremendous danger to the children leaving or boarding these buses – as evident by the most recent struck Lakewood youth.
The penalty for Failing to Yield to a School Bus is a motor vehicles summons in which the offender pays a fine and receives Five (5) points. Folks – Reckless Driving is another violation that will get you Five (5) points. Careless Driving is Two (2) points. That shows you the potential danger law enforcement attributes to the violation. In other words: It’s dangerous, very dangerous – in the same category as Reckless Driving and DUI. If lucky you’ll only get the summons and not seriously injure or kill a child.
So please don’t do it. If you see a driver do it and can safely record the cars plate number, please report it to local police. Do not chase down or approach the offender. The safety of children is the responsibility of all adults. Please drive responsibly
