MELBOURNE, Fla. (AP) — Authorities say a Florida superintendent was pulled over for illegally passing a school bus as police were running a bus safety campaign. 
 
 Florida Today reports that Superintendent of Brevard Public Schools Desmond Blackburn was driving his district-issued SUV the morning of March 27 when he was stopped and given a warning. 
 
 Melbourne police had increased patrols around school buses from Feb. 26 until March 29 as part of "Operation BUSted." A police spokeswoman says officers issued 115 tickets and 14 warnings for failure to stop for a school bus during the campaign. 
 
 Blackburn acknowledged he was one of the drivers who needed a reminder and thanked police for their work. 
 
 Florida law says vehicles traveling in both directions on an undivided roadway must stop for a stopped school bus. 
 
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 Information from: Florida Today (Melbourne, Fla.), http://www.floridatoday.com 

 CLOSE During a campaign to educate drivers about school bus safety laws, Superintendent of Brevard Public Schools Desmond Blackburn was pulled over for failing to stop for a school bus. GINNY BEAGAN/FLORIDA TODAY Wochit 
 
 Buy Photo Superintendent Desmond Blackburn at a school board workshop in Viera. (Photo: TIM SHORTT/FLORIDA TODAY)Buy Photo 
 
 During a campaign to educate drivers about school bus safety laws, Superintendent of Brevard Public Schools Desmond Blackburn was pulled over for failing to stop for a school bus. 
 
 The Melbourne Police Department said Blackburn was pulled over around 8 a.m. March 27 and issued a warning at the intersection of Wickham Road and Longwood Boulevard. Blackburn was driving his district-issued SUV at the time. 
 
 He was pulled over during the Melbourne Police Department's "Operation BUSted," a new campaign whose purpose is to reduce the number of drivers illegally passing school buses in order to keep students safe. 
 
 More: Melbourne PD ramping up traffic enforcement 
 
 More: British family killed in Titusville car crash 
 
 More: Thumbs down: Superintendent Blackburn's traffic infraction is all too ironic 
 
 Contacted by FLORIDA TODAY, Blackburn would not provide details of the incident, but lauded the safety program. 
 
 "I want to thank Melbourne PD for getting out and supporting bus safety week," he said, adding that he was appreciative that the agency was reminding drivers about school bus laws, "and I was one of the drivers that received a reminder." 
 
 The maximum penalty for passing a school bus that has a stop sign extended is a $274 fine and four points on your license, according to Melbourne Police. If the driver passes the bus on the side where children enter and exit the bus, the driver is subject to a mandatory court hearing. 
 
 Blackburn received only a warning. 
 
 CLOSE Brevard Public Schools Superintendent Desmond Blackburn sits down with FLORIDA TODAY education reporter Caroline Glenn before the start of the 2017-18 school year. 
 
 Spokeswoman for police department Cheryl Trainer said that during the campaign, which lasted from Feb. 26 through March 29, officers issued 115 tickets and 14 warnings for failure to stop for a school bus. 
 
 "During the course of that campaign, we gave out written warnings to a number of people," Trainer said. "We are looking for compliance, and the officers do have, by policy, ability to exercise discretion. Our big push is to get everybody to start paying attention." 
 
 Since February, when the campaign launched, police officers have been visiting school drop-off loops and reaching out to student-drivers to make them aware of the laws. 
 
 The law states that cars driving in both directions on a two-lane roadway, including those with a center turning lane or those without a median, must stop for a stopped school bus. Where there is a median separating lanes of traffic, only the cars traveling the same direction as the bus must stop. 
 
 Glenn is the education reporter at FLORIDA TODAY. 
 
 Contact Glenn at 321-576-5933 
 
 or caglenn@floridatoday.com. 
 
 Twitter: @bycarolineglenn 
 
 Facebook: /floridatodayeducation 
 
 CLOSE Brevard County Sheriff Wayne Ivey and School Superintendent Desmond Blackburn, Ph.D. talk about Brevard school safety in the wake of the Parkland mass shooting. Video by Tim Shortt. Posted 2/26/18. 
 
 CLOSE Superintendent of Schools Dr. Desmond Blackburn, wearing school bus cufflinks, started his day early on the first day of school at 6:30 a.m., riding a school bus to Riviera Elementary school in Palm Bay. Video by Malcolm Denemark 
 
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– Bad: Authorities say a Florida school superintendent was pulled over for illegally passing a school bus. Worse: It happened as police were running a bus safety campaign. Florida Today reports that Brevard Public Schools Superintendent Desmond Blackburn was driving his district-issued SUV the morning of March 27 when he was stopped and given a warning by police in Melbourne. Police had increased patrols around school buses from Feb. 26 until March 29 as part of "Operation BUSted." A police spokeswoman says officers issued 115 tickets and 14 warnings for failure to stop for a school bus during the campaign. Blackburn acknowledged he was one of the drivers who needed a reminder and thanked police for their work, per the AP. Florida law says vehicles traveling in both directions on an undivided roadway must stop for a stopped school bus.