PEORIA, Ariz. — A 70-year-old man that boarded a Peoria school bus and allegedly punched a non-verbal student with autism in the face will not face any criminal charges.
The Maricopa County Attorney’s Office and the city of Peoria Prosecutors Office declining to file any charges after determining there was not a likelihood of conviction for a felony or misdemeanor charge.
Sammy Alford, who is 21 years old but has the mental capacity of a four-year-old, was on his way to school on April 26 when the bus stopped to pick up another student with special needs.
At that time, Sammy was strapped to his seat while he was having a meltdown. He was agitated, yelling, and hitting the wall and window of his seat.
School bus surveillance video shows the driver trying to calm Sammy down. But as blaring music was playing through the bus speakers, the 70-year-old grandfather of the other student boarded the bus yelling, “you’re going to break the window and I’m going to bust you in the head.”
The man continued to yell at Sammy as the bus driver repeatedly told him he could handle the situation, but the grandfather persisted.
The man is seen on video fully boarding the bus, raising his voice, and getting within inches of to Sammy.
While in distress, Sammy then pushes the man and the bus driver away from him, three seconds later the grandfather punches him in the face.
Peoria Police were called to investigate and later submitted charges against the 70-year-old man for one count of vulnerable adult abuse—a felony.
The county attorney’s office declined to prosecute and forwarded the case to the city prosecutors for possible misdemeanor charges after determining there was not a likelihood of conviction.
But now the city prosecutor’s office has decided not to pursue charges either, and said in an email “after reviewing and carefully assessing the evidence and full context within which this event took place, we have determined there is no reasonable likelihood of conviction.”
12 News is not naming the man since he was never charged. We made multiple attempts to speak with him but were unable to reach him.
“This is not what we expected,” Scott Alford said, who is Sammy’s father. “It’s a disappointment because that should be an easy one to prove, there is video and there are witnesses.”
Scott and Corina Alford met with the prosecutors of both entities but said they were not able to pursue them.
The parents allege they were told the 70-year-old man had a defense and the county or city would not invest time in a case they would not be able to win.
“He doesn’t have a voice. He can’t say his version of what happened on that bus, so it just gets dismissed,” Corina Alford said frustratedly.
The city prosecutor’s office said no additional charges are under consideration.
Peoria Police department said since both entities declined to charge the grandfather. The case was now closed.
Sammy’s parents are appalled and said, “ [the man] didn’t even get a ticket for punching someone in the face. If you speed you pay a fine, if you hit someone there has to be some type of accountability,” Corina Alford said.
On Wednesday, the Alford’s met with Peoria’s Mayor Cathy Carlat. They said she agreed to help them in their efforts to educate the community that works or interacts with people with disabilities, so they are better trained and know how to care and respect them.
Sammy’s parents said they hope with policy changes, what happened to their son won’t repeat itself.
“Now it’s all about preventative measures. We have to fix this. It’s not okay to punch anyone. It’s not okay to punch a special needs kid who is defenseless,” Scott Alford said.
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