A Lansingburgh school board member is accused of chasing down a school bus and threatening to punch a 10-year-old boy in the face.

Kelley Bristol allegedly followed her daughter's school bus for a couple of blocks and pushed her way onto the bus. She called out the name of a boy riding the bus and when he raised his hand, she threatened to punch him in the head if he ever touched her elementary school age daughter again, according to Stacy Mendrick, the boy's mother.

Bristol was issued a ticket to appear in Schaghticoke Town Court on Jan. 3 for a disorderly conduct violation, Town Justice Bruce Arnold said Thursday. School board President Mary Sweeney confirmed that an investigation into Bristol's action was ongoing and said Bristol has not been suspended.

"We're in the middle of a 'She said, she said.' We're still gathering information," Sweeney said.

The incident was sparked by a game of "punch buggy," in which children hit each other in the arm whenever they see a Volkswagen Beetle car, said Mendrick and another parent, who declined to be named for fear of reprisal.

Mendrick said her son had "poked" the girl during the game and claimed that the girl then whacked him with her lunchbox. She said that, since the Dec. 7 incident, her son has been sitting at the back of the bus, watching for cars that are following it because he was worried.

"I think in this day and age, when children are killing themselves over bullying, that the example you set as a parent will bestow those same traits on the child and that parents should be very, very careful about an outward show of force, especially toward another child," Mendrick said.

Bristol hung up when contacted at home by a reporter.

The other parent who spoke with a reporter said her daughter was scared of the bus, and was worried that an adult was going to board and make threats. She said she has asked the district to provide counseling for her child.

The district may have camera footage from the bus, but Mendrick said she was told she could not view the footage because it was blank and did not show anything. She said she does not want to sue the district, but wants to make sure that children are not terrified by a member of the board elected to represent them.

Lansingburgh Superintendent George Goodwin would not tell a reporter whether or not his school buses had cameras and would not answer any questions about the case.

"The children are safe," he said, before ending the call.

Scott Waldman can be reached at 454-5080 or by e-mail at swaldman@timesunion.com.