Dad James Jones, Faces 2 Misdemeanor Charges, Out On Bail and Apologizing For Losing Cool On School Bus/On The Today Show 10/4. Watch Video!

UPDATED: 1:14 am EDT September 17, 2010
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LAKE MARY, Fla. -- A local dad who took matters into his own hands after his daughter told him other children were harassing her has caused some troubles of his own.

James Jones, 42, is facing two misdemeanor charges of disorderly conduct and disturbing a school function following his tirade on a Lake Mary school bus on Thursday.

Jones, who has bonded out of jail, admitted he is at fault for storming into the school bus, police said.

“It was a mistake. I made that mistake (and) I'm trying to pay for that. I'm worried about my daughter, that's all I'm worried about,” he said.

Jones told investigators that he was only sticking up for his daughter when other students at Greenwood Lakes Middle School were picking on her.

A surveillance video from the bus showed Jones using profane language as he threatened students who his daughter said had put open condoms on her head and hurt her by smacking her on the back of her head and twisting her ear.

“Now everybody sit down; sit down,” Jones said on the surveillance tape. “Show me which one. Show me which one.”

The video showed Jones' daughter pointing him in their direction.

“This is my daughter, and I will kill the (expletive) who fought her,” Jones said on the video.

Alonzo Brundidge, 13, said he got scared after Jones started yelling at him and his friends.

“He said he was going to (expletive) the bus driver up first, and he (then) he was going to do it to everybody else,” he said.

His mother, Aileen Brundidge, was beside herself with anger on what happened.

“I was upset to the point where I wanted to cry,” she said.

Jones said he felt bad for threatening the children, but he said there's nothing else that he could do to protect his daughter.

“I do feel bad. I do feel bad, I told you that. (But) there's nothing else I could do,” Jones said.

Officials with the Seminole County Sheriff's Office said Jones should have called them instead of scaring the students on the school bus.

* September 18th, 2010 11:21 am ET

Is your school bus a bully-free-zone? Does your child fear the bus? Hear one father's story.
Photo: Florida DOT

Wake up Florida, when is enough - ENOUGH!

Almost one year ago Broward County made national headlines, and not in a positive way. 15 year-old (now 16) Michael Brewer of Deerfield Beach was doused in alcohol and set on fire by other teenagers. Only months later in March 2010, 15 year-old Josie Ratley was nearly stomped to death by yet another teen.

We now go to Central Florida where a 13 year-old girl has been constantly teased, bullied, hazed, taunted by a group of bullies on the school bus. This young girl also suffers with cerebral palsy and has been the victim of having her ears twisted and actual open condoms placed on her head.

Her father, James Jones, understandably, had had enough. He goes into a tirade as he enters the bus and makes disturbing threats to harm the perpetrators.

"My daughter is not going to be hazed and beat up and touched on like what they've done, okay," said Jones. Join the recent support page on Facebook.

James Jones says he told school officials about the bullying and they did nothing. The father is now facing charges and there are many opinions on this incident. Condoning the actions of the father may not be acceptable, however as a parent, many can understand where this rage came from.

The young girl was hospitalized due to the stress this has caused her. Her father was arrested Thursday after he stormed onto the bus two weeks ago and later released on bail. He does hope to apologize to the kids for his actions according to his attorney.

Consider this was your 13 year-old daughter that already is struggling with a handicap she has no control over. Consider she is being bullied, and kids are actually putting condoms on her head as they taunt her? Think of her feelings? Think of her emotions? If a tear doesn't come to your eye, or you don't have any sort of compassion for her, you are most likely in the minority.

Florida has some bullying policies in place, but obviously it is not enough. Maybe we need to see more kids stepping up with the parents and forming Anti-Bullying Clubs like young Dalton Reynolds formed in Florida.

Be an educated parent, you will have safer teens.

Watch video of the father on the bus.

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This is so awful! I know the Dad was wrong threatening the kids but someone has to stop the terrible things they are doing to this innocent little girl. I don't know why the schools don't have a older child be a patrol boy or girl and report the little bullies to the school principal. Maybe if they knew they were going to get reported and get in trouble it might stop.

If this dad talks like this in public, throwing the "F bomb" around children, one can only imagine what he says or does behind closed doors.

I do not condone his behaviour at all. It is not What he did, but How he did it. He could have gotten on the bus and said his peace (which he had every right to do as any parent of a child being bullied does) w/out the language and threatening the lives of not only children but the bus driver. THAT is why he was arrested.

And, his little daughter was so traumatized by what her dad did, she ended up in the hospital. WTH??? I think this man is a bully and probably at home, too!

Janie, that's a good idea you have.

You are always on the ball, Nite!! I will make sure LM merges mine with yours. Sorry about that!

I would love your opinion on this.

I saw this on Nancy Grace, and I do think his anger was justified, but he went overboard by threatening to kill them. I heard that he tried to talk to the school officials, but they didn't do anything about it. It must have been very frustrating!

My son doesn't ride the bus, but it seems to be a "perfect" environment for bullies. There is one bus driver (who is busy trying to drive) with a whole bunch of kids. There really should be at least one other person on board (preferably a man) who can keep order! JMO

JVM's panel talked about this on Friday and suggested another adult on board, but w/all the cut-back's in the school system, that may not work.

Sad, but true!!

It is a parent's job to protect their child. It sounds as though he went to the School...and again, nothing changed. He must have been feeling extreme hurt, anger and a protective nature towards his daughter. Of course I do not believe he should have used profanity and threats. However, I understand his rage and frustration.

I agree but as I stated, I wonder what that poor girls home life if like if he would spout off like that in public w/camera's rolling.

It's hard to know which side of the fence to stand on here.
IMO it's hard to blame Mr. Jones for his reaction. If we don't stand up and demand that our children be SAFE, no one else is going to do it for us.
Time and time again we have seen physical attacks happen on our public school buses. Heck we've even seen the bus drivers committing assault and become victims themselves.
The School Districts don't want to be held accountable after your kids leave the campus. They don't want to be made to protect your children, make your children behave, or insure that your child arrives at school and returns home safely at the end of the school day.
Of course this might be disputed by most school boards... who most certainly want to imply that your child is safely in good hands on a bus.
And to that I would argue this "If I have to safely restrain (by LAW) my child in a car-seat, booster chair or seat-belt then why doesn't this law also apply to school districts and the buses that transport our children?"

Mr. Jones I don't feel like you owe anyone an apology.
However I would like to hear it from the Bullies who provoked this reaction from you... and their parents!

Nite, agree about the seat belts and that the schools want us to believe our kids are safe at school (Kyron Horman & Josie Ratley May be good examples of why that is not true).

I DO agree that this dad had every right to be highly angered but to come on the school bus like the gestapo and drop the F bomb all over the place, thereby scaring little kids who are completely innocent and also threatening to kill not only the bully but the bus driver was over the top. And to top it off, his daughter was so traumatized from what happened, she ended up in the hospital.

I have to wonder what this man is like at home.

NiteSpinR wrote:Mr. Jones I don't feel like you owe anyone an apology.
However I would like to hear it from the Bullies who provoked this reaction from you... and their parents!

In complete agreement with your last sentence. I would like to hear it from the bullies parents. I wonder..did Mr. Jones ever make an attempt to talk to them?

Those kids are lucky no one got beat up. I can see me doing something simular. So I am not going to Judge this Father at all. What about the bus driver that was allowing this girl to be treated way? I would think the driver should be apologizing as well as the kids involved. I would love to hear from the parents whose children picked on a little girl. All those kids involved should not be allowed on the bus. Make their parents take them to school since they can't behave.

I tend to agree, Lindamarie. I also heard that she had special needs (not sure exactly what), so I can see her father being "over protective" of her! I think a lot of kids nowadays are being raised without a father & proper discipline - maybe they needed a good "talking to" to get them to smarten up!!

Maybe she wasn't being harrassed on the bus or if she was it was covert. Who knows? I STILL think that nothing is resolved by loud yelling, cursing, and acting like an idiot, threatening little children and a school bus driver. Now, he is apologizing.

I definitely GET it that he is livid pissed and he has a right to be. I still want to know if he ever made any attempt to talk to the bullies parent(s). The little girl has cerebral palsy.

To traumatize her by his actions whereby she ends up in the hospital is way over the top. I do NOT believe in yelling and cursing to get ones message across. Unless a gun is put to my head or I am drowning or on fire. Or if my grandchildren's lives are at risk by the above. But, that's just me.

You catch more flies with honey than you do w/vinegar.

You catch more flies with honey than you do w/vinegar.

True, but sometimes you just need to drown that fly.

laga wrote:You catch more flies with honey than you do w/vinegar.

True, but sometimes you just need to drown that fly.

:lol!:

Good one, Laga! :lol!:

I also wanted to add, that at least he didn't bring a gun on board & threaten them with that! In other words, it could have been a LOT worse!!

This poor girl! My heart goes out to her!

You know what I think might be the answer to this problem of bullying? Parents, School officials, teachers seem to turn a blind eye to the problems of bullying. Maybe if it is made more public on TV...like the Today show, Ellen, etc...maybe it just won't be so cool to be a bully.
I really can't blame this man for his response. He was hurt, frustrated, angry...at least he was in protect mode. At least he cared.

I had not been as willing to agree that what he did was politically correct. It was not What he did but How he did it w/the cursing in front of the little ones.

In retrospect, after seeing The Today Show's interview, I have changed my mind.