NEAR WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (WSVN) — A Florida bus aide is facing criticism after being accused of crossing the line in a confrontation involving a student wearing a “Make America Great Again” hat.
Fourteen-year-old Gunnar Johansson sported his MAGA cap for a hat day at school.
“To show my pride in Trump America,” said Johansson. “Stand up for what you believe in.”
The 14-year-old was boarding a school bus to his middle school near West Palm Beach when the confrontation with the bus aide occurred.
“Immediately, I heard the bus aide tell me to, you know, ‘Knock that off. Take that hat off,'” said Johansson.
Johansson said he was really confused at the time.
“Boy, if you don’t take that hat off on this bus. Take it off!” the bus aide could be heard saying in video of the incident.
“I can’t wear my hat?” Johansson said in response.
“No, take that hat off. Take it off now. Put it in your backpack,” the bus aide said in the video.
Johansson said the bus aide not only threatened him with a referral but also said she would turn the bus around if he did not remove the hat.
“I said, ‘Write me up. I didn’t do anything wrong,’ and then she yanked my hat off. It was crazy,” the 14-year-old said.
Martin County Sheriff’s Office Lt. Ryan Grimsdale said they were able to confirm that the bus aide did in fact remove the hat.
Johansson said he followed the bus aide’s orders and kept the hat off for the remainder of the ride.
Meanwhile, other students on the bus wearing different hats were not ordered to remove theirs.
Johansson’s brother and fellow students then texted his mother, Jackie Putt.
“I immediately went to the school,” she said.
Putt said there were no school policies forbidding students from wearing political clothing, so she wanted answers.
“I needed to know what my son just went through and what she did to my son,” said Putt. “We all have a right to who we want to vote for. This is America.”
Putt filed a police report after being told she wouldn’t see the video until the investigation from the school district was closed.
“The district is aware of the family’s allegations. We’re taking it very seriously,” said Martin County School Director of Safety and Security Frank Frangella.
Grimsdale said police are also reviewing the video and talking to all parties involved.
“The crux of our investigation will be the interaction directly, physically with the child,” said Grimsdale.
The Martin County School District has not confirmed the status of the school aide, but Johansson said she has not been driving the school bus since the incident.
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