Manager Allegedly Smelled Booze on Bus Driver's Breath

Rolling Meadows, Ill. - A bus driver in Mount Prospect is accused of driving drunk while taking children home from school. And that's not the surprising part.

A supervisor allegedly smelled the alcohol on the driver’s breath, but let her finish the route anyway.

Betty Burden, 54, allegedly reeked of booze and had a blood alcohol level of 0.226 when she was arrested, prosecutors say.

She admitted downing several vodka and oranges before driving 50 students home from Lions Park Elementary School, said Tandra Simonton, a spokeswoman for the Cook County state's attorney.

A co-worker noticed the smell on her breath at 2:30 p.m., police said, but Burden's supervisor didn't alert police until 3:45 p.m.

Burden wasn't arrested until she had completed her route and dropped off all of her young passengers, according to Mount Prospect Police. She failed a series of sobriety tests before failing the blood alcohol test, police said.

"What happened was totally unacceptable," School District 57 Board President Joe Leane said.