CONWAY, Ark. — This week, the Conway Police Department reported 15 incidents of drivers illegally passing a school bus at a complete stop.
This newly released data has left the Conway community in an uproar about wanting change.
On Tuesday, interns at the Conway city attorney's office presented data on violations over the years to the city board in hopes of improving the outcome.
City Attorney Charles Finkenbinder said people should know what is going on in their city, and collecting this data over time helps their offices determine what "is working, and not working, and see if they need to make some changes."
The data showed highlights of specific demographics who are committing these crimes, what time of day it happens and the prime hot spots where it reoccurs.
While there are more prosecutions, Finkenbinder said it's actually a sign that the process is working.
According to Finkenbinder, new laws and changes on the bus have allowed more bus drivers to come forward, wanting to report what they witnessed on their routes.
"It's a very hard job," Finkenbinder said. "You can imagine the frustration that they have felt over the years because it shouldn't take a little boy or girl not making it home for us to do something about the problem."
Finkenbinder said his hope in releasing this data is to educate the public on why this issue is so important and to change people's thinking.
If you illegally pass a school bus, the consequences can be severe.
For first-time violators, the penalty is up to 90 days in jail, a $1,000 fine, and 400 hours of community service.