Moment a six-year-old Kentucky girl is dragged 1,000 feet along the road after her backpack got stuck in school bus door: Fired driver is now facing a civil lawsuit from furious mom

  • Ally Rednour, 6, was stepping off the Jefferson County Public School bus back on May 15, 2015, when the doors closed on her backpack, trapping her
  • Driver Melinda Sanders failed to notice what happened and drove off
  • Surveillance camera in the bus shows the child being dragged several blocks
  • Ally was taken to hospital where doctors said she suffered severe abrasions to 12% of her body and was forced to undergo several surgeries
  • Sanders was fired back in 2015 but is on civil trial this week after the girl's mom filed a lawsuit against the driver in 2018 seeking unspecified damages

Dramatic footage has surfaced of the moment a Kentucky school bus driver dragged a six-year-old 1,000 feet along the road after driving off while the girl's backpack was caught in the doors.

Ally Rednour, a first grader at Wilkerson Elementary School at the time, was stepping off the Jefferson County Public School bus back on May 15, 2015, when the doors closed on her backpack, leaving her trapped. 

The driver, Melinda Sanders, failed to notice and drove off, with the surveillance camera inside the bus capturing the six-year-old being dragged for several blocks. 

Ally was taken to hospital where doctors said she suffered severe abrasions to 12 percent of her body and was forced to undergo several surgeries.  

Sanders is on civil trial this week after the girl's mom filed a lawsuit against the driver in 2018 seeking unspecified damages.  

Dramatic footage shows the moment a Kentucky school bus driver dragged a six-year-old 1,000 feet along the road after driving off while the girl's backpack was caught in the doors

Dramatic footage shows the moment a Kentucky school bus driver dragged a six-year-old 1,000 feet along the road after driving off while the girl's backpack was caught in the doors

Ally Rednour (pictured in the hospital after the incident) was forced to undergo several surgeries after suffering abrasions to 12 percent of her body

Ally Rednour (pictured in the hospital after the incident) was forced to undergo several surgeries after suffering abrasions to 12 percent of her body

Sanders is seen testifying at her civil trial this week after the girl's mom filed a lawsuit against the driver in 2018 seeking unspecified damages

Sanders is seen testifying at her civil trial this week after the girl's mom filed a lawsuit against the driver in 2018 seeking unspecified damages

The footage, which was obtained by WAVE3 and was expected to be played at trial, shows the six-year-old walking down the steps of the bus to exit the vehicle. 

As she gets to the bottom step the doors close hitting her arm before trapping her bright pink backpack.

The girl turns around to look back up the stairs while Sanders is seen staring straight ahead out the front windshield.

The doors then close completely trapping the body of the backpack inside the vehicle while Ally's arms are still through the handles.  

Sanders starts to drive off and Ally is seen desperately running in an effort to keep up with the bus as it pulls her along.

After a few seconds she is unable to keep up, falls and is dragged by the bus.

During the incident, another student is seen standing by Sanders as she drives the vehicle and the driver is heard chatting and shouting at some of the students. 

As she gets to the bottom step the doors close hitting her arm before trapping her bright pink backpack
The girl turns around to look back up the stairs while Sanders is seen staring straight ahead out the front windshield

The footage shows the six-year-old walking down the steps of the bus to exit the vehicle. As she gets to the bottom step the doors close hitting her arm before trapping her bright pink backpack. Sanders fails to notice

The doors then close completely and Sanders starts to drive off. Ally is seen desperately running in an effort to keep up with the bus as it pulls her along

The doors then close completely and Sanders starts to drive off. Ally is seen desperately running in an effort to keep up with the bus as it pulls her along

After a few seconds she is unable to keep up, falls and is dragged by the bus. During the incident, another student is seen standing by Sanders as she drives the vehicle

After a few seconds she is unable to keep up, falls and is dragged by the bus. During the incident, another student is seen standing by Sanders as she drives the vehicle

After another vehicle honks its horns Sander notices what has happened. She stops the bus and is heard exclaiming: 'Oh my God, Oh my God. The doors open and Sanders rushes down the stairs to see the six-year-old

After another vehicle honks its horns Sander notices what has happened. She stops the bus and is heard exclaiming: 'Oh my God, Oh my God. The doors open and Sanders rushes down the stairs to see the six-year-old

Sanders fails to notice what is going on until another vehicle is heard honking its horn, in an apparent effort to get her to stop.

At that point, Sanders looks to the doors and notices Ally trapped.

She stops the bus and is heard exclaiming: 'Oh my God, Oh my God.

The doors open and Sanders rushes down the stairs to see the six-year-old.  

The incident took place in 2015 but the video came to light this week as the civil trial against Sanders and the school district got underway Tuesday.  

Attorneys for the girl's family said she was dragged 1,147 feet in the incident 

They said Sanders broke 16 rules of her employment as a bus driver including around ensuring children get on and off the bus safely.

As well as failing to watch Ally disembark the bus, she also allegedly ran a stop sign and allowed another student to stand while she was driving. 

Ally's pediatric surgeon took the stand at the civil trial this week showing the court that the six-year-old suffered skin loss on both legs

Ally's pediatric surgeon took the stand at the civil trial this week showing the court that the six-year-old suffered skin loss on both legs

Sanders took the stand to testify as a witness where she expressed regret for what had happened, reported WPSD Local

When asked what the 'moment of truth' of 'loading and unloading' children to the bus means to her, she replied: "It means a lot to me, and I wish, Mr. Paulus, that I had followed that, that day.'

She added: 'I can't take that day back.' 

Several other current and former employees with the district's Department of Transportation also took the stand to testify that Sanders had broken protocol that day.

JCPS school bus driver and trainer Katrina Ferral described the incident as 'horrible' and said drivers are required to ensure kids are 10 feet from the bus before pulling away.

Ally, who was identified as AR in the lawsuit but was named in media reports back in 2015, suffered severe nerve damage and PTSD and had to undergo multiple surgeries, according to the family. She is pictured in hospital after the incident

Ally, who was identified as AR in the lawsuit but was named in media reports back in 2015, suffered severe nerve damage and PTSD and had to undergo multiple surgeries, according to the family. She is pictured in hospital after the incident

Ally is seen recovering after the 2015 encounter. Her mom filed a lawsuit in 2018 against Sanders and the school district

Ally is seen recovering after the 2015 encounter. Her mom filed a lawsuit in 2018 against Sanders and the school district  

'I think it's horrible,' she said. 

'You watch them get off the bus, you close the door. When they're away from the bus, close the door, you look in that mirror and you watch them. 

'They have to be 10 feet away before you pull off.'

Ally's pediatric surgeon also told the court the six-year-old suffered skin loss on both legs. 

Dr. Sheldon Bond said: 'We had some skin loss here and some skin loss there [points to each leg]. This was a very big abrasion which was scrubbed.'

Ally, who was identified as AR in the lawsuit but was named in media reports back in 2015, was taken to hospital with minor injuries and was released two days later.

Her family said in the suit that she suffered severe nerve damage and PTSD and had to undergo multiple surgeries. 

Sanders was fired by the district one month after the incident, in which they said she ignored training and did not follow procedure by not watching the child get off the bus.   

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