The Associated Press

CORVALLIS — The Ravalli County sheriff’s department is investigating after a Corvallis school bus driver left a 16-year-old developmentally disabled girl on a school bus, in a restraint system, for three hours after the bus dropped other students off.

School officials say the driver forgot to take the girl off the bus last Thursday. Family members told KECI-TV the girl has the cognitive ability of a 4-year-old. Undersheriff Steve Holton says she needed to be harnessed in the bus seat for safety.

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Superintendent Tim Johnson says the district is improving the way attendance information is shared between drivers and special services staff. The driver was placed on paid leave during an investigation and won’t drive for Corvallis schools for the rest of the school year.

The girl’s family says she is no longer attending school in Corvallis.