Matthew Bak LegalDefenseCampaign

On Friday, Nov. 3, we learned my brother, beloved Oak Ridge school bus driver and piano instructor Matthew Bak, was arrested and charged after an incident on his school bus. Matthew, and all who know him, are shocked by the charges and the way he has been portrayed as he has always enjoyed working with children and has become a fixture on his bus route. This campaign has been set up to help pay the legal fees and fight this unjust charge against him.

Matthew is a good school bus driver, trained, very serious, and totally committed to the safety of his charges. For the last three years he has been supplementing his Social Security check by driving a 52-passenger school bus in and around Oak Ridge, TN. He has enjoyed driving and even cleaned and washed the buses between scheduled routes and on school breaks.

The school superintendent issued a statement to all Oak Ridge School parents charging Matthew with "aggression towards a child” for trying to get unruly students to behave safely on the route. The bus company contracted by the school system, First Student, fired him that same night. On behalf of our family, my wife and I immediately posted the $7,500 bail bond to get him out of detention. We are all devastated. Matthew has never been arrested or charged with anything, much less jailed.

Since the incident, children from his regular routes have asked the new driver where Matthew is. They miss him, because he is hardly the monster the police, the superintendent, and the media have portrayed him to be. Matthew has always enjoyed working with children. As a trained classical pianist, he taught kids of all ages in their homes since the early 1970’s. He was known for being patient and gentle with his students. More information about his piano teaching which he continues to this day can be found on his Facebook page.

Matthew is the victim in a situation where students with a history of bus misbehavior created an unsafe situation. Matthew’s freedom and livelihood are at stake in this fight. As Matthew fights to clear his name in Court, we ask you for your assistance in fighting this battle with us.

The principal goal of this campaign is to pay legal fees. We have already paid the $7,500 bond and a downpayment of $10,000 to the law firm. This will need to be augmented with $1,000 per month for 10 months starting this past December. If Matthew actually goes to trial, we will need to raise an additional $10,000 in the next year. Key to the success of this effort is to reach as many people as possible starting with those who know Matthew from his years of service as a music and piano instructor, choir director and bus driver in Oak Ridge. Share this information and talk to your friends about Matthew’s case. Encourage them to talk to their friends. We know that the vast majority of people will understand the gravity of this case and will come out to support Matthew, but time is of the essence. Thank you for whatever you can do to help us make this happen.