Bus Driver Hurt by Rock; 3 Boys Held
Three boys are scheduled to appear in Long Beach Juvenile Court next month for allegedly throwing a bowling ball-size rock off a freeway overpass Sunday and injuring an MTA bus driver, authorities said.
The boys, ages 8, 9 and 14, were taken into custody Sunday night, minutes after allegedly throwing the 10-pound rock off the Wardlow Road overpass of the Long Beach Freeway in the Bixby Knolls area of Long Beach. They were released to their parents after the parents and boys were issued citations to appear in family court.
The rock hit the bus driver, whose name was not released, in the shoulder. He also was cut by shattered window glass. He was treated at Long Beach Memorial Hospital and released.
Officers had stepped up patrols in the vicinity of the Wardlow Road overpass after complaints that objects were being thrown at vehicles, said Officer Joseph Pace.
The three boys were observed on Sunday wiping rock debris off their hands, Pace said. He said officers think the boys may have been involved in other similar incidents.
“I’d like to think they weren’t trying to hurt someone, but it seems like they’ve been doing this the past few nights,” Pace said.
“These rocks could’ve killed someone. That bus driver was very lucky.”
The district attorney’s office has not decided what charges to file against the juveniles.
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