School Bus Driver Charged With DUI

LOGANVILLE, Ga. — A school bus driver here was fired on Monday after being accused of driving her bus under the influence with 31 students on board.

A student on the bus that Carole Etheridge was driving captured part of the ride on video and told CBS46 that Etheridge seemed to be driving 60 to 70 miles per hour “and she hit a driveway and we started to wobble.” Several students contacted their parents, who then notified the Walton County School District, according to CBS46.

The Walton County Sheriff’s Office told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution that Etheridge had a large bottle of tequila, small bottles of vodka, and prescription pills in her purse. Etheridge was arrested at Loganville Middle School after taking a field sobriety test, WSB-TV reports.

Etheridge was charged with one count of DUI and 16 counts of endangering a child for each student aboard the bus under the age of 14. Callen Moore, a spokeswoman for the Walton County School District, told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution that there was a total of 31 students aboard the bus.

Etheridge began driving a bus for Walton County School District in March, and school officials told the newspaper that a background check found no issues. Gwinnett County Public Schools confirmed to WSB-TV that Etheridge had driven for them but was fired in January for “unsatisfactory performance.”