Bus Driver, Aide Arrested In Child Abuse Case: Hillsborough Sheriff

TAMPA, FL — A Hillsborough County Public Schools bus aide and driver were arrested after a child abuse investigation, authorities said.

The bus aide, Juanita Wright, faces 14 child abuse charges, while the driver, Tonya Rice-Constant, was charged with failure to report child abuse, the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release.

Deputies began their investigation Nov. 14 after a witness reported seeing a bus aide, later identified as Wright, 79, hitting a 10-year-old victim on an HCPS bus parked at Caminiti Exceptional School in Tampa.

The victim, diagnosed with autism and ADHD, is minimally verbal, the sheriff’s office said.

On Nov. 18, deputies reviewed video footage showing Wright repeatedly abusing the child, HCSO said.

The video also captured Wright and the bus driver, Rice-Constant, 62, laughing during the abuse, investigators said.

Detectives reviewed additional video footage on Dec. 23 and identified 13 additional days between Oct. 2 and Nov. 14 in which Wright was seen abusing the student.

“This case goes far beyond abuse. It reveals a level of cruelty that is deeply disturbing,” Sheriff Chad Chronister said. “A defenseless child was physically abused by someone entrusted with their care, while another adult failed to intervene and instead laughed. It is an inexcusable betrayal of trust and a profound lack of humanity when adults who are supposed to protect a child not only inflict harm, but also allow it to happen. In Hillsborough County, this kind of conduct will be met with the full force of the law.”

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