VALPARAISO — The Porter County Sheriff's Department is teaming up with police in Valparaiso, Chesterton and Hebron in a shared effort to crack down on motorists putting students on school buses at risk.
If a bus driver or aid witness a driving violation by another motorist, they will record the license plate number and vehicle description, which will be provided to the school resources officer to investigate, according Porter County Sheriff Dave Reynolds.
If the information proves credible, citations will be issues or charges filed, he said.
"By the officer listing the driver as a truthful and credible witness, the law puts the burden of proof on the registered owner (of the vehicle) to prove it was not them driving the vehicle if charges are filed," Reynolds said.
"If there proves to be a need, we will then place officers on those buses," he said. "If a violation is then observed, the officer will have the ability to relay the information in real time to the patrol units working that area to stop the driver(s) and issue citations."
"If we find there to be one violation a day in Porter County, that is one too many," Reynolds said.
The effort mirrors the Stop Arm Violation Campaign used by the Hobart Police Department.
Please be mindful of our children as they board and depart school buses. Additional police presence will be in and around our schools, particularly during arrival and dismissal times.
Hebron Police Department has adopted a no tolerance policy when dealing with stop arm violations or school zone traffic violations.