In early March, Mineral County resident Crystal Lemonds was shocked to look at her daughter’s tracking app and find that Mineral County School District transportation shuttle driver Mike Marketti brought her kids home from school, clocking a top speed of 97mph.
In a school shuttle bus that holds eight students, and a tracking app on her son’s phone caught Marketti going that fast as well. Lemonds’ past records show that he also drove 97mph the day before and 83mph on March 11th.
Lemonds contacted school district superintendent Stephanie Keuhey to file a complaint about it and says that Keuhey ultimately blocked her. Therefore, she confronted Marketti herself and filmed the interaction. In the video, Marketti admitted to driving up to 95 mph, saying he had to get up to speed to pass three semi-trucks. When Lemonds says that the speed limit is 55mph, Marketti replied that the 55mph speed limit only applies to school buses, not shuttle vans.
While Mike Marketti was taken off her kids’ school bus route, he still drives for the District. Lemonds ultimately felt like the issue was brushed under the rug and that MCSD students’ safety may still be at risk.
Marketti has had written complaints against him in the past from elementary school children being “terrified” of him.
“He’s incredibly nasty to children, mean, and when they get loud, he likes to slam on the brakes,” Lemonds claims.
Lemonds and a few other parents filed police reports supporting these claims, mentioning their children’s eyewitness accounts. For instance, one statement reads:
“While watching my daughter’s 360 App over the course of this school year, I have noticed some troubling events while she was on the bus. Two main issues [are] speeding and excessive hard braking…I get notifications on my phone when the app perceives ‘hard braking.’ I would ask my daughter what happened; she would tell me that kids were talking loudly and when they were loud, he would ‘brake check’ the bus to knock kids out of their seats to make them be quiet. I asked her if all the drivers did this and she stated, ‘No, only Mr. Marketti did that and then would scream at them…I’ve spoken with other children on the bus when I babysit them on occasion and they are stating the same things as my daughter.”
Lemonds says that after she filed the report, she didn’t hear anything further. Mineral County Sheriff Bill Ferguson said that about the incident, the original reporting party obtained multiple statements from witnesses or other parents with concerns and a report was generated. The Sheriff’s Office sent the report to the Mineral County District Attorney’s Office for review and doesn’t know where the case stands at this time.
“My department always prioritizes our youth’s safety. If these allegations have merit, I am confident our District Attorney’s Office will act accordingly,” Sheriff Ferguson said.
On May 6th, Mineral County School District Superintendent Stephanie Keuhey offered this updated statement from the District:
“The District is unwavering in its commitment to ensuring the safety and well-being of all our students and staff. In March, the Mineral County School District became aware of allegations regarding a bus driver exceeding speed limits. Following District protocols, an independent investigator conducted a thorough investigation into the matter. Based upon the results of the investigation, appropriate action was taken in accordance with District policies. We remain dedicated to maintaining a safe transportation program and will continue to prioritize the welfare of our students and staff.”
As of press time, Keuhey did not respond to requests for comment about what action was taken as a result of this incident or what the District policies are in relation to this incident.
“It’s my understanding that Mike has not missed any days of work over this. There are a few of my kids’ friends who won’t even go on the bus. They put another woman on our route; she’s really kind and we like her but what about the kids on his other route? Now their lives are in danger,” Lemonds adds.
