Ham Lake man to serve probation for assaulting student

A Ham Lake man who assaulted a student in Fridley while serving as a bus driver last year has learned his fate.

Court records show 72-year-old Paul Martin has been sentenced to one year of supervised probation after pleading guilty to one count of fifth-degree assault – inflict or attempt bodily harm.

Martin was sentenced for the charge last Friday, however, a review hearing is scheduled for the afternoon of July 15.

As previously reported, Martin was accused of assaulting a 12-year-old in the parking lot of Fridley High School last November. A criminal complaint states a police officer had looked at the school’s camera system and saw the assault on the sidewalk of the north parking lot at around 8:45 a.m.

RELATED: Bus driver arrested, charged with assaulting student in Fridley

The bus driver, later identified as Martin, was seen in the video running off the bus, pushing one student and then tackling another student from behind, knocking both to the ground. Martin then stayed on top of the student for a short time before getting up, grabbing something off the ground and handing it to the victim, the complaint states. He then walked back to the bus.

The complaint states Martin talked with police and admitted he “lost it.”