RALEIGH, N.C. – A North Carolina bus driver faces misdemeanor assault charges after he allegedly pushed an 8-year-old student down the bus’s stairs and into the door.

Narciso Rafael De Leon Alphonso, 55, allegedly asked a shy young boy to do a head count on the way to school Aug. 14, and the child declined, the 8-year-old’s mother told ABC 11.

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That’s when the child said Alphonso grabbed him by the back of his shirt and threw him down the bus stairs. The boy reportedly smacked his head on the closed bus doors, leaving him with a bump and scar on his head, according to the news site.

The bus was on its way to Durant Road Elementary School, where the mother said officials took a picture of the injuries, then sent the boy to class without informing her about the incident. The boy’s mother told ABC 11 her two daughters were also on the bus and confirmed the child’s story.

Alphonso has worked for the Millbrook Transportation District since 2011, and passed a criminal background check. School officials suspended Alphonso with pay after his arrest on one count of assault on a child under the age of 12, and he’s currently out on bond, WRAL reports.

Many folks who read the story online were outraged that school officials did not contact the boy’s parents immediately after the incident.

“Had that been my child his mug shot would have looked totally different,” Gabe Williams wrote. “Shame on the school for not notifying the parents. Any injury to the head and face is supposed to be an automatic call to the parents.”

“What’s with schools not calling parents when their child is injured, even slightly?” Pris Gud posted. “In my opinion, the bus driver has to know assault upon anyone is illegal.”

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“Now this qualifies as a lawsuit if I ever seen one. Schools used to call parents when injuries happened,” Scoobygurl commented. “And when did taking photos of injuries start? Looks like they already knew something was fishy to take a pic. Tiptoe around the violent bus driver, you don’t want to have him quit his job in the middle of the day. Lord forbid administration would have to step in and drive a bus.”

“They knew he was pushed by an adult employee at that school. That’s enough to warrant a phone call to the parents. Kids fighting kids is one thing but this is an adult,” Scoobygurl added. “Yes where are the pictures and did they question others besides the siblings?”