A former Delco school bus driver was sentenced to state prison for filming upskirt photos of students

A former Delaware County school bus driver was sentenced this week to 21 to 48 months in state prison for filming dozens of upskirt videos of female students, some as young as 6 years old.

Bruce Garner, 71, pleaded guilty in February to attempting to create child pornography, unlawful contact with minors, invasion of privacy and related crimes for the 139 videos he took on his iPhone while working as a bus driver for the Marple Newtown School District.

Deputy District Attorney Kristen Kemp said Thursday that Garner would still likely be engaging in his “depraved and disgusting behavior” if not for a pair of 14-year-olds who rode his bus. The teens noticed that Garner had been acting strangely in May 2022, Kemp said, and turned a camera on him, secretly filming him as he held out his phone to record the videos as school girls in uniforms passed by. .

“When you drop your child off at school or at daycare or at soccer practice, you entrust the adults to keep your child safe, to not abuse your child, to not violate your child,” Kemp said. “And when you don’t have trust, you can’t work, you can’t function.”

» READ MORE: A Delco school bus driver took upskirt photos and video of female passengers on his route, prosecutors said

The teens showed their video to their parents, who in turn contacted police. Garner later admitted to taking the videos, but minimized how often he had done so, Kemp said. A search of his iPhone revealed the large volume of footage he had accumulated,according to the prosecutor.

“This wasn’t just one child’s word against his. This was hundreds of files of digital evidence against the defendant,” Kemp said. “What else are you supposed to do besides plead and beg for forgiveness under those circumstances?”

Some of the children and their parents addressed Delaware County Judge Mary Alice Brennan in emotional impact statements, taking turns saying how violated they felt.

One mother said her daughter was afraid to ride the school bus, and has deep issues trusting adults.

“He didn’t stop filming our daughter because one day he felt bad,” the woman said. “He stopped because his victims took away his power.”

Garner’s attorney, R. Emmett Madden, asked Brennan for leniency for his client, saying he had spent the last year undergoing therapy and volunteering with people experiencing homelessness. He pleaded guilty to accept responsibility, Madden said, and avoid further traumatizing the victims through a trial.

“He’s hurt all these people in immeasurable ways,” Madden said. “But from the moment this investigation began, he has been cooperative.”

Garner also addressed the judge, choking back tears and calling himself a monster and a “broken and sinful man.”

“There are no words in our language that can begin to touch the depths of my sorrow for what I did to you,” Garner said, addressing the victims and their families assembled in the courtroom. “To say I’m sorry is woefully inadequate, but I am sorry.”

Madden asked the judge to spare Garner from prison, saying that living in his community as a registered sex offender would be the “ultimate punishment.”

“The reality is, if he’s in jail, he’s in jail and he’s forgotten,” Madden said. “A real punishment is him having to face up to this every day.”

Brennan was not swayed. In addition to his prison time, Garner was sentenced to eight years of probation, and is barred from being alone with or working with children.