Mesa police turn school bus kerfuffle into forceful arrests of 3 students

Around 1 p.m. on April 12, Zella Andreas got a call from her 15-year-old son. He said he was on his way home on the school bus, but that the driver had stopped the bus. Andreas’ son then asked if she could come pick him up.

When Andreas arrived, she found her son and two other teens on the ground in handcuffs, surrounded by Mesa police officers.

Cell phone videos of the arrests were captured by other students on the bus, and they have caused a stir among parents and teens at Riverview High School in Mesa. In the videos, two officers are seen grabbing Andreas' son by his neck as they try to handcuff him. Then an officer pushes a 13-year-old girl to the ground, handcuffing her as she screams.

Andreas' son was taken to jail and slapped with multiple charges in juvenile court.

Now, Andreas and other parents are calling for answers. "I don't want [the officers] to get away with that," she told Phoenix New Times. "They're supposed to be here to protect and serve us. And we don't even feel safe with them."

So far, the Mesa Police Department has not investigated the arrest of the three students — a 13-year-old girl, a 13-year-old boy and a 15-year-old boy. Det. Brandi George, a public information officer with the agency, told New Times that the department believes the officers' actions were within policy.

Outrage over videos

The incident started when a Mesa Public Schools bus driver called the police when one of the students on the bus was crawling under the seats. The student, as well as the rest of the students on board, attend Riverview High School, which serves children with alternative needs, including behavioral issues.

Parents are frustrated at how quickly the driver resorted to calling the cops. "She did not have to call the police, jump to that right away," said Josephine Richards, the grandmother of the 13-year-old girl who was thrown to the ground.

The principal of Riverview, Justin Firehawk, did not reply to multiple requests for comment, nor did a spokesperson for Mesa Public Schools.

In addition to viewing the cell phone video, which was filmed by one of the teens on the bus and then posted on social media by a parent, New Times reviewed body-worn camera footage from multiple officers involved in the incident. Because there is a backlog of video that must be reviewed and redacted, the Mesa Police Department generally takes months or years to release copies of such footage to the general public and media, a department spokesperson told New Times.

While New Times was not provided with a copy of the footage, it was allowed to view it in full at the agency's headquarters on April 27.

Three officers responded to the bus driver's call — Sgt. Quentin Gerbich and two unnamed officers. Gerbich was the first to get on the bus. He was not wearing a body camera, so his initial conversation with the bus driver was not recorded. It appears from later footage that Andreas' son was removed from the bus after swearing at Gerbich and not for crawling under seats.

In a conversation between Andreas' son and the sergeant before the arrest, recorded on another officer's body camera, Gerbich admonishes the young boy for cursing. In the video, the two are standing calmly on the sidewalk beside the bus. "Yeah, but you yelled at me," Andreas' son told Gerbich.

"Were you in the seat that you were supposed to be in?" Gerbich asked.

"Yes," the 15-year-old responded.

"You didn't switch seats at all?" the Gerbich continued.

"No," the teen said, explaining that another student had been crawling under the seats.

Gerbich returned to the bus. "Is there anyone else on this bus that was disrespectful or causing a disturbance," he asked the driver, who pointed to a 13-year-old girl. "This young lady," she said.

The girl was then escorted off the bus.

Body camera footage shows that the 13-year-old girl spoke with one of the officers for a minute or so, giggling and dancing as she did so. "Are you done laughing?" the officer asked her. Then, the officer asked for her name, which she initially refused to provide. When the officer pressed her, she gave her last name. At that point, the other officer approached her — saying, "All right, listen" — grabbed the girl by the wrist and shoulder, and dragged her to the wall.

Up until this point, Andreas' son was leaning against the wall while looking at his phone. But when the officer grabbed the girl, he looked up and walked toward them. This initiated the physical struggle that was captured on the video.

Ultimately, the girl was handcuffed. Body camera footage shows her screaming as the officers attempt to secure the handcuffs, pushing her head forward as they did so. "She's a girl, bro," a student on the bus cried out as this event occurred.

"You are detained for a disorderly conduct investigation," one officer told her.

Given their ages, New Times is withholding the names of Andreas' son and the other students involved in the incident.

Andreas believes the force used by the officers was excessive — especially because no one alleges that the children were involved in any serious crime or violence. "They shouldn't be putting their hands on kids," she said. "They didn't have to treat my son like that."

As captured on the cell phone videos, at some point, another boy — also 13 — was removed from the bus, pinned to the ground and arrested. Officers alleged that he was the student who had been crawling under the seats of the bus. The student was released to a parent or guardian, police said, but the status of the case against him is not clear.

Andreas was not allowed to remove her son from the scene. Instead, according to both Andreas and footage reviewed by New Times, the boy and the 13-year-old girl were taken to the Durango Juvenile Detention Facility in handcuffs and booked. It wasn't until nearly 11 p.m. — 10 hours after the arrest — that Andreas and Richards were able to bring their children home.

Students face charges

On April 20, Andreas received a letter in the mail. As a result of the arrest, her son faces charges of disorderly conduct and obstructing governmental operations in a case in juvenile court. New Times has reviewed a copy of this document.

George confirmed that Andreas's son is being charged with disorderly conduct for his behavior on the bus. The obstruction charge, the agency spokesperson said, was due to his alleged interference in the arrest of the 13-year-old girl when he put out his arm toward her as an officer pinned the girl to the ground.

He now has a court date in May.

Richards said her granddaughter received a letter requiring her to participate in a daylong diversion program to avoid charges of disorderly conduct and threatening a police officer. After being thrown to the ground and handcuffed, the girl had yelled at officers that she would "kill" them, according to body camera footage.

"I asked her why would you say that?" Richards said. "She said, 'Because I was scared.'"

Richards's granddaughter is doing okay, she said. She was in pain for a day or so after being handcuffed, and stayed home from school, but has now returned to classes. "She doesn't really talk about what happened. She stays quiet about that," Richards added.

Many of the students at Riverview are members of the Salt River Pima–Maricopa Indian Community and live on the reservation, according to data from Mesa Public Schools. Andreas said she believes that the officers' perception of the school played a role in what occurred on April 12.

"I don't think it would have happened if they were white. I don't like to say that, but I know that has a whole lot to do with it," she said. "Just because they go to that school doesn't mean they did something bad. My son's not a bad kid."

Andreas has been too nervous to send her son back on the bus, she said. She can tell that what happened has impacted him, although he hasn't opened up to her much about it yet. The school did not discipline him — and has apologized to her, Andreas said — but she feels that that is not enough.