BEVERLY, MASS. (WHDH) - A Beverly school bus driver faced a judge Wednesday after authorities say a 5-year-old boy who was left alone on his bus for more than three hours wandered away and got hit by a car in September.
David Boutros, 71, of Haverhill, was arraigned in Salem District Court on a charge of reckless endangerment of a child and released on personal recognizance, according to Carrie Kimball-Monahan, a spokeswoman for the Essex County district attorney’s office.
Officers responding to the intersection of Rantoul and Elliott streets for a report of a young child walking alone around 11:45 a.m. on Sept. 7 witnessed the Cove Elementary School kindergartner run into the road and collide with a motor vehicle, police said.
The boy was taken to Beverly Hospital with minor injuries.
Boutros picked the boy at 7:15 a.m. and “failed to ensure that he exited the bus,” according to the district attorney’s office.
Prosecutors have requested to bar Boutros from employment involving children.
Boutros was ordered to stay away from the victim.
A pre-trial hearing has been scheduled for Dec. 19.
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