High-schooler charged with felony after fighting on the bus with middle-schooler

A Bluffton High School junior was arrested Tuesday on felony assault charges after being accused of choking a sixth-grade boy during the morning bus ride to school.

Marcus Jacolby Anderson-Wright, 17 --6-foot-1 and 250 pounds -- grabbed the boy, who is 4-foot-8 and 70 pounds, by the neck and choked him, according to a news release Wednesday from the Bluffton Police Department.

Chief David McAllister said the two had been arguing about the younger boy's sister. The boy, who had red marks around his neck, was examined by the school nurse but did not need further care, McAllister said.

Anderson-Wright is charged with assault and battery, a felony, and disturbing schools. He is being held on a $35,000 cash bond, according to the news release.

Bluffton High School Principal Robert Anderson said the junior was suspended. He also will not be allowed back on the bus, the principal said. He declined to say how long the suspension would last.

"We applied the policy, which allows us to go from zero to 10 days suspension," Anderson said. "When he returns, we'll take him off the bus. Obviously, the hope is you never have anything like this occur."

It's not typical for middle and high school students to share a bus, though it does occur on some routes, said Carol McMillan, a spokeswoman for the Beaufort County School District.

She was not sure how many routes are shared but said it generally only happens in rural areas. She did not know where the two students lived but said they rode a bus that has carried a mix of middle and high school students for 15 years.

Anderson said he rarely sees problems on buses between such students.

Roy Stehle, director of special revenue projects who oversaw district transportation in the late 1990s, said state law allows school districts to transport elementary, middle and high school students together.

Stehle said he could not recall any fights on buses that resulted in a felony charge.