Port Charlotte, Florida – A mother has been arrested for trying to hit a Port Charlotte High School security officer with her vehicle.
The incident allegedly happened on November 2. Tarajayne Samuels-Catalan, 42, dropped off her child and then tried to exit going the wrong way through a one-way entrance, reports ABC-7. She told responding officers she didn’t want to drive over speed bumps because they would damage her vehicle.
A school security officer stopped Catalan, telling her she couldn’t go that way because school buses were coming to unload students, reports MySunCoast.com. She became agitated but eventually backed up and turned her car around, which led the officer to believe she was cooperating.
A bus, which had started to pull in during the incident, was waiting for Catalan to move her vehicle. When her vehicle had cleared, the bus continued on its route, reports WinkNews. As the bus passed, Catalan turned her vehicle toward the officer and sped towards him.
The officer narrowly avoided being hit by the vehicle by jumping out of the way into nearby bushes. A witness saw the incident unfold and the school’s video surveillance system corroborated the officer’s allegations.
Catalan was arrested on Tuesday and charged with aggravated assault on a public or private education employee, reports Fox35. She is currently being held in the Charlotte County Jail without bond.
Catalan said she did not intend to hit the officer.
