WHITTIER >> A school bus driver who left an autistic 19-year-old alone a school bus for about seven hours, resulting in his death from overheating, pleaded guilty Friday to a charge of dependent abuse, authorities said.
Armando Abel Ramirez, 37, of Apple Valley, pleaded guilty to a county of felony dependent adult abuse resulting in death, Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office spokeswoman Shiara Davila-Morales said.
“The defendant additionally admitted an allegation of proximately causing the death of the victim,” she said.
The charge stems from the Sept. 11, 2015 death of Hun Joon “Paul” Lee, 19, of Whittier, who was found dead on a school bus parked in a Whittier Union High School District parking lot on Mulberry Drive, between Painter and Greenleaf avenues.
*VIDEO of guilty plea
Ramirez, who had been free on bond pending the trial process, was remanded into custody Friday pending sentencing, Davila-Morales said.
Ramirez was ordered to return to the Norwalk branch of Los Angeles County Superior Court on Jan. 30 for sentencing before Judge Joseph R. Porras, according to Davila-Morales. He is expected to receive a sentence of two years in state prison under the negotiated plea arrangement.
If convicted at trial, Ramirez could have faced a maximum sentence of nine years in prison.
Lee, who had autism and was described as non-verbal, was a student at Sierra Vista Adult School.
After boarding the bus for school, he never got off, according to prosecutors and a wrongful death lawsuit filed by Lee’s family against the school district and it’s contracted bus company, Pupil transportation Cooperative.
Lee’s family began seeking him after he failed to return home from school in the afternoon.
Ramirez returned to the bus after being informed that a student was missing before Lee was found unresponsive. Temperatures day topped 90 degrees.
An autopsy determined that Lee died of hyperthermia, or overheating, and the death was ruled accidental.
Police arrested Ramirez in late-March, and he subsequently denied the criminal charge filed against him.
In a statement issued by family attorneys Panish Shea & Boyle LLP, Lee’s mother, Eun Ha Lee, addressed the conviction.
“Whatever prison sentence the bus driver ultimately receives, our family cannot be content or satisfied as the life of our precious son was taken away as a result of his negligence,” she said. “Paul cannot return to our family and, today, we feel the pain of losing him even more. We hope that Paul’s death will not be in vain and that our community will work together to help, love and provide justice to children of special needs.”
Following Lee’s death, new legislation aimed at preventing similar tragedies from taking place in the future.
The bill, authored by state Sen. Tony Mendoza, D-Artesia, requires all school buses in California to be equipped with a child-safety alarm system in the back of the vehicle that must be turned off by the bus driver, in order to ensure the drives check each seat.
It also requires drivers to receive training in child-safety check procedures upon the annual renewal of their school bus driver licenses. Lee’s family commended the legislation.
Lee’s mother expressed gratitude to the community for its support.
“We want to thank everyone who worked, mourned and prayed with us in the months following the death of our beloved son Paul,” she said.