A bus driver who was accused of selling fentanyl to students at a Riverside school was sentenced to three years in state prison on Thursday, July 20.
Melissa Harloan Garrison pleaded guilty in April to three counts each of willful child cruelty and giving a minor a controlled substance, as well as one count of sale of a controlled substance, Superior Court records show.
Judge Jeffrey Prevost also ordered Garrison to participate, through the Division of Adult Institutions, in substance abuse counseling or education, said John Hall, a spokesman for the Riverside County District Attorney’s Office.
Riverside police said at the time of Garrison’s arrest that officers were called to the Bright Futures Academy on County Farm Road to investigate reports that an employee was selling fentanyl to students at the K-12 campus, which the California Department of Education says is geared to children with behavioral disorders.
While questioning witnesses, officers learned that a student had recently overdosed on suspected fentanyl the week before at their home. The student survived.
During the investigation, Garrison’s husband, David Wayne Garrison, was accused of weapons violations. He pleaded guilty in November to possessing a firearm after being convicted of a misdemeanor and being a prohibited person in possession of ammunition. He was sentenced to 364 days in county jail and two years probation, Superior Court records show.