Insets, from left: Donquarious Ridley and Raven Barner at the Johnson County Jail. In the background is the Greenwood, Indiana, apartment complex where the confrontation began (Google Maps).
An Indiana father has been sentenced to prison after prosecutors said he encouraged his young son to fight another child aboard a school bus.
Donquarious Ridley, 28, pleaded guilty Monday to contributing to the delinquency of a minor and two counts of battery against a child younger than 14. He received a two-year prison sentence. His plea followed that of his partner, 26-year-old Raven Barner, who admitted to two counts of battery against a person under 14.
The couple acknowledged that they boarded a school bus outside their Greenwood apartment complex on Oct. 31, 2025, and urged Ridley’s son to confront a child they believed had been bullying him. The adults then became directly involved, attacking the child themselves.
An affidavit reviewed by Law&Crime said the entire incident was captured by the bus’s interior security camera. Investigators reported that Ridley and Barner entered after the bus arrived to pick up Ridley’s son, despite having no permission from the driver to come aboard.
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Barner, the boy’s stepmother, reportedly began arguing with two children. She threatened one child and said she would have her stepson fight him. Video allegedly showed Barner encouraging the boy to start the confrontation.
When the driver stood up and moved between Barner and one of the children, Barner struck both kids, with police describing one of the blows as accidental.
Police said footage showed Ridley directing his son to engage with the child Barner had hit. The boy followed the instruction and struck the other child. Ridley then threw the child to the floor, creating an opportunity for his son to hit him repeatedly. Afterward, Ridley pushed a second child into a bus seat with enough force for the child to hit the side of the vehicle.
Barner was sentenced May 21 to one year in jail and an additional year of probation. She must also complete a mental health evaluation.
Ridley’s prison sentence will be followed by two years of probation. The court also ordered him to complete anger management, undergo mental health and substance abuse evaluations, and participate in treatment if recommended.
