Judge asked to step aside in trial over disabled girl’s bus assault. Here’s his response.

Judge Robert Krebs will continue to handle the criminal prosecution of a former school bus driver accused of assaulting a disabled St. Martin Middle School student.

The judge issued the ruling Tuesday, a week after the attorney for former bus driver Antioinette Jane Raymond asked the judge to step aside.

The attorney, Keith Pisarich, wanted the case reassigned because Krebs was set to hear a pending civil suit that the family of the special education student, then 14, filed over the assault.

Pisarich made the request after Krebs announced he would not follow the state’s sentencing recommendation to fine Raymond and give her a suspended prison sentence.

In his order, Krebs said, he “has handled the criminal prosecution from its inception and has had no hearings or interaction with the civil suit.”

A new judge

Krebs said the civil case is being reassigned to Judge Dale Harkey.

Pisarich wanted the criminal case to go before Judge Kathy King Jackson because she had sentenced co-defendant and ex-St. Martin Middle School special education teacher Kerri Anne Nettles in May.

Jackson followed the state’s sentencing recommendation — Nettles was fined and given a suspended prison sentence.

A grand jury indicted Raymond and Nettles on misdemeanor charges of simple assault and contributing to the delinquency, neglect or abuse of a child. The alleged crimes occurred in the 2014-15 school year.

Raymond was set to enter no-contest pleas, but her attorney said the case would now go to trial.

Krebs has ordered the attorneys to set a trial date.

The assault

The Sun Herald broke the story in April on the assault that included video footage of the teacher threatening the girl and stuffing a towel in her mouth to keep her quiet

Raymond threatens to take the girl to jail, choke her and kill her if she doesn’t keep her voice down and stop moving around.

At one point, Raymond and the teacher hear the girl say what they believe is profanity.

Raymond goes over to the girl’s seat and sits on her lap.

“Now, go ahead, move, big girl,” Raymond yells. “Go ahead, move, move. Can you move now? Huh? You going to shut that mouth, huh? You going to holler anymore? You do it again, I’m going to warn you again. You better shut your mouth. You hear me? You hear me?”

The girl also calls out for her Paw Paw and says she wants to go home. Raymond told the girl he was gone.

This story was originally published August 15, 2018 at 1:47 PM.