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Mom jailed after school bus fight
A Marietta mother faces multiple charges after a heated confrontation with a school bus driver was captured on camera.
MARIETTA, Ga. - A mother was arrested following a physical altercation with a Marietta City Schools bus driver after she allegedly boarded the bus to retrieve her children when she missed their scheduled stop.
The Feb. 24 incident, which was caught on the bus’s surveillance camera and the mother's personal cell phone, has resulted in multiple charges against Zaria Stovall.
Mother vs school bus driver
What we know:
The confrontation began when Stovall missed the scheduled drop-off for her two children by "just a few seconds" and followed the bus to the next stop. According to police, when Stovall attempted to board the bus to get her children, the driver refused to allow it, citing district procedures.
"They have protocol and procedures that they have to follow when dropping off children," said Marietta Police Officer Denise Lozado.
Marietta mother Zaria Stovall confronts a Marietta City Schools bus driver after being told she could not retrieve her children at an unscheduled stop in Marietta on Feb. 24, 2026. (Marietta Police Department)
Video footage shows the driver demanding Stovall get off the bus while Stovall's young daughter is seen crying. Stovall admitted to throwing a plastic spray bottle at the driver but claims the driver pushed her multiple times, causing her to fall.
Following the incident, Stovall was arrested and charged with disruption of public schools; simple assault against a public school employee; simple battery against a public school employee; upbraiding, insulting, or abusing a school bus driver; and criminal trespass.
Zaria Stovall was booked into the Cobb County Jail after a confrontation with a Marietta City Schools bus driver on Feb. 24, 2026. (Cobb County Sheriff’s Office)
‘He pushes me off the bus’
What they're saying:
Both the driver and the parent were captured yelling during the heated exchange.
"He pushes me off the bus, so I fly off the bus, he pushes me again. I fly off. I walk back up, he pushes me again, but this time I'm on the second step and I fall down," Stovall told FOX 5.
Zaria Stovall explains her side of confrontation with a Marietta City Schools bus driver last month during an interview on March 6, 2026. (FOX 5 Atlanta)
While an arrest warrant states Stovall punched the driver in the face—and her own video captures her saying, "I’m about to punch you." Stovall says she does not recall the strike.
"I don't remember punching him in the face," Stovall said. "I remember getting up each time trying to get up, every time I tried to get up I get pushed back down."
Stovall vows to fight charges
What's next:
Stovall says she intends to fight the charges, claiming the police report is inaccurate regarding who initiated the physical contact. She noted that since the altercation, a different driver has been assigned to her children’s bus route.
The Source: