news-record.com

On Dec. 1, state law got tougher for drivers who pass a stopped school bus and hit a child.

Like 8-year-old Mariah Rogers, struck and seriously injured by a hit-and-run driver Tuesday afternoon as she was getting off her bus in High Point.

Dale Folwell called the Guilford County District Attorney's Office Thursday to make sure prosecutors knew about the change in the law.

Folwell, a Republican state representative from Winston-Salem, was a primary sponsor of the legislation. He's also got a personal stake: His 7-year-old son, Dalton, was killed in a similar accident in front of their home in 1999. The driver, who passed a stopped school bus, was sentenced only to 100 hours of community service.

"I'm really praying for this girl," Folwell said of Mariah, who is being treated at Brenner Children's Hospital in Winston-Salem. "She's in the same wing my son was in."

Guilford County drivers put children at risk an average of 179 times every school day by passing stopped buses, Folwell said. That's up five incidents per day from 2006. Increasing penalties for violators, and putting a police emphasis on enforcement, are two necessary approaches to the problem. Schools also can help by minimizing the number of stops where children have to cross a street to reach the bus.

But safety depends on greater awareness by drivers and a willingness to stop and wait for children to board buses.

Every time a driver gets behind a bus or sees one approaching from the other direction, he should anticipate a possible stop. A little patience can prevent terrible accidents.

In the High Point case, the suspected driver is a teenager who panicked and fled after hitting Mariah. The consequences of youthful irresponsibility and poor judgment are severe. What's the excuse for adults who do the same?

"When children depend on a halo of protection," Folwell said of the school bus stop arm, "the last people who should violate that are adults."