By Associated Press - Monday, October 22, 2018

VALPARAISO, Ind. (AP) - A former Porter Township school bus driver has pleaded not guilty after three students were allowed to drive her bus while others were riding.

The (Northwest Indiana) Times reports that 27-year-old Joandrea McAtee appeared Monday in Porter Superior Court.

McAtee is charged with neglect of a dependent, a felony.



Police said the students — ages 11, 13 and 17 — drove the bus Sept. 20 in a rural area of Valparaiso as other students were being dropped off after school. McAtee was fired by the district and the school bus company.

A preliminary hearing is scheduled Jan. 28.

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Information from: The Times, http://www.nwitimes.com

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