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"First Student denies all allegations and demands a trial by jury in a case involving injuries a girl allegedly sustained in a school bus attack.<br /><br />Cora Jackson claims her daughter, De&rsquo;Ja Payne, was riding a school bus on Jan. 11, 2011, when Nickeynon Banner, allegedly teased her about her weight. Payne asked Banner to leave her alone when Banner fist-punched De&rsquo;Ja in the face about five times, the suit states. Both were students at West Junior High in Belleville at the time.<br /><br />According to the lawsuit, Banner had repeatedly taunted and bullied Payne in the months leading up to the attack, and the school, including the bus driver, was aware of Banner&rsquo;s proclivity toward violence.<br /><br />First Student filed its answer to the suit on Aug. 28, denying the allegations against it and listing its affirmative defenses.<br /><br />First Student claims the plaintiff&rsquo;s negligence was greater than 50 percent of the cause of her injuries and damages. Therefore, it alleges that action against the bus company is barred and Payne&rsquo;s recovery should be reduced in proportion to the amount of fault attributable to the plaintiff.<br /><br />A third party member, whom First Student claims it had no right to control, is blamed as the sole proximate cause of the plaintiff&rsquo;s alleged injuries, the response states.<br /><br />On Aug. 6, Belleville Public School District #118 responded to the complaint claiming Payne instigated and/or failed to stop the verbal and physical confrontation and that if she had ceased the altercation, she could have avoided some or all of her claimed injuries.<br /><br />The school district also blames Payne&rsquo;s own negligence as the cause of the incident, stating that Payne failed to exercise due care for her own safety and failed to keep a careful lookout.<br /><br />The plaintiffs replied to the school district&rsquo;s affirmative defenses denying all defenses on Aug. 28.<br /><br />Jackson blames the bus company and school district for causing her daughter&rsquo;s injuries, saying they negligently failed to provide an aide to ensure safety, failed to intervene and prevent the attack on Payne and failed to transport her with reasonable safety.<br /><br />Jackson and Payne seek a judgment of more than $50,000.<br /><br />St. Clair County Circuit Judge Andrew Gleeson presides. He continued the case on Sept. 16, setting a status conference on March 3, 2014, at 9 a.m.<br /><br />The plaintiffs are represented by Brian D. Kurth from Meyerkord &amp; Meyerkord, LLC, in St. Louis.<br /><br />First Student is represented by Meg L. Fowler and Katharine A. Aplington of HeplerBroom LLC in St. Louis.<br /><br />Belleville Public School District #118 is represented by Joe Callahan of Rouse &amp; Cary in St. Louis.<br /><br /><i>St. Clair County Circuit Court case number 13-L-327</i>"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://madisonrecord.com/stories/510576290-first-student-denies-allegations-in-school-bus-fight-lawsuit>