KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — A Knoxville Police Department warrant provided more details regarding the arrest of a Knox County School bus driver.
Matthew Leveque, a 63-year-old, was charged with driving under the influence Thursday morning at Holston Middle School.
The warrant said an officer responded to the school around 9:15 a.m. after security received calls regarding a school bus driving erratically and missing several stops while transporting students. The bus was also later than usual—dropping off 28 Ritta Elementary School children and 19 middle school students at Holston Middle.
School security conducted a safety check on Leveque before officers arrived, but the suspect became "very nervous and set off the back alarm," according to the warrant.
Leveque told school security that he felt "great" and said he wasn't taking any new medications. The warrant said the smell of alcohol was coming from Leveque's breath.
Officers found a knife on Leveque after he was asked to step off the bus. He was taken to the back of a police cruiser and asked what medication he was on and "what was going on that day." He was slow to respond to the officer's questions, had slurred and mumbled speech and displayed some difficulty maintaining balance, according to the warrant.
The bus driver was then asked to perform a field sobriety test and failed to complete it as instructed. When asked how much he had to drink, he told them that he was unsure because he "was just pouring vodka into a shot glass and then mixing it with orange juice," the warrant said.
Leveque then told officers he thought he might've drank "a quarter of a fifth of Vodka," according to the warrant.
Knox County Schools provided a statement to WBIR on Thursday regarding the arrest:
"KCS does not tolerate this type of behavior or any unsafe activity on buses that serve our students. The bus driver has been removed from the district’s roster of eligible drivers. All families whose students were on the bus were made aware of the incident, and arrangements have been made to cover transportation going forward. We appreciate KCS School Security and the Knoxville Police Department for their efforts in this matter. The safety of our students is and will remain our top priority."
Leveque was employed with Lynch Bus Lines, LLC, according to a KCS spokesperson. He is scheduled to appear in court for a preliminary hearing on April 26.