DETROIT – Police are searching for two passengers who attacked a DDOT bus driver on video on Detroit’s east side.
The incident occurred Monday (Oct. 23) on Jefferson Avenue, and police say passengers spit on the DDOT (Detroit Department of Transportation) driver, causing the fight to break out on camera.
“They’re jumping on him,” said a passenger.
In Michigan, it may soon be a five-year felony to put your hands on a bus driver.
DDOT drivers told Local 4 that a man and a woman were fighting the bus driver while pinning him against the bus.
The bus driver could be heard on video telling the two adults to stop while demanding they give him back his glasses and let him go.
“Get off of me,” said the driver.
All of this went down outside of DDOT bus No. 1503.
Ultimately, the bus passengers involved in the fight looked exhausted. The driver, returning to his bus, was asked why he was struggling with the two passengers, and he replied that they spit in his face.
DDOT Transit Police are investigating the incident.
“We feel one assault is one assault too many,” said DDOT Transit Police Chief Ricky Brown. “We will investigate this and pursue it as far as we can for prosecution.”
In the past, bus drivers refused to come to work until changes in safety for them were made. Brown says incidents targeting drivers plummeted after safety changes for drivers were put in place.
“DDOT and the city have invested in safe barriers for the drivers by installing partitions and things of that nature,” Brown said. “Step two is police can investigate, pull video, and submit warrants to the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office.”
Drivers are trained during any incident to stay behind their partitions and call for police.
During this incident, the driver got out from behind the wheel and his protective partition, taking issue with being spit on by passengers.
“It is hard to watch,” Brown said. “Any assault is hard to watch.”
We’re told that no arrests nor charges have been made yet, but the driver was not badly hurt in the incident.