Discovery that prompted school closings leads to removal of 8 bus drivers, officials say

Tuesday, January 30th 2007, 8:47 pm

By: News On 6

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) _ Background checks prompted by a bus company lapse that forced the school system to cancel classes for a day have found eight bus drivers with drunken driving convictions, school officials said Tuesday.

``We've asked all bus contractors _ we have four _ to comply with contract provisions and remove drivers with prior drug-alcohol convictions from district bus routes,'' said Michael Fulwider, a district spokesman.

The school system told the companies to look harder at their drivers' records after one contractor found last week that it had not completed criminal background checks on drivers, Fulwider said.

The discovery by Cincinnati-based First Student Inc. followed the arrest of one of its Columbus drivers on a charge of cocaine possession, and it led the company to ground its Columbus fleet on Thursday. That forced the district, as well as private schools that depend on the buses, to cancel classes for the day.

Police said they found a syringe partially filled with a substance that tested positive for cocaine when they pulled over a bus. State records showed the driver had three convictions for driving under the influence.

First Student last week identified two more drivers with DUI records, and all three were taken off their routes, Fulwider said.

Three other companies also removed drivers with drunken driving convictions, he said.