A Long Island school bus driver, who was terminated for drinking while transporting students, will not face any charges because police believe that she didn’t know it was alcohol.

Amal Hanna, who is 60 years old and a cancer patient, claimed she didn’t know the White Claw drink she consumed was alcohol because chemotherapy has affected her taste buds. She says she grabbed a hard seltzer by mistake, not realizing it was an alcoholic beverage.

She tearfully told News12LI in an interview about her mistake that cost her the job she loved for 15 years. Hanna took off her hat to show the interviewer whisps of her hair that are the result of the savage chemotherapy that she is undergoing. The bus driver did not reveal what type of cancer she was suffering from.

“It was just a mistake, it was a mistake,” she asserted to News12LI.

EXCLUSIVE: Amal Hanna is currently suffering through chemotherapy treatments, and says she has trouble tasting and did not taste any alcohol in the White Claw. https://t.co/lTrLifG6hQ pic.twitter.com/LGVwlKMrPT

— News12LI (@News12LI) October 6, 2023

Hanna is originally from Egypt. She wept as she recalled being fired last week after the White Claw was spotted in her cup holder.

“I love the kids, I love my [former employer],” she told News12LI.

A Suffolk County Police spokesperson stated that authorities believe her story and therefore would not file any charges against her according to Newsday. School officials, however, are apparently not backing down and are calling her actions “completely unacceptable.”

The woman was terrified of facing charges over the incident that have now been dropped.

She told her interviewer, “I’m frightened I’m going to be on the street because of a mistake.”

A Long Island school bus driver caught drinking while transporting students home won’t face charges. The driver, Amal Hanna, explained that she grabbed an alcoholic seltzer, thinking it was a regular fruit-flavored seltzer. #LongIsland #Drunkdriving pic.twitter.com/K6WJwn4d1u

— US-Crimes (@OfficialUScrime) October 9, 2023

“I go in the morning, so happy, see the kids, say ‘Good morning, how are you?’ Give them a big smile,” she stated.

Hanna recounted how she grabbed a drink from the fridge that she shares with her roommate. She thought it was a regular fruity seltzer. She drank it over the course of her day before she drove the kids home from Smithtown High School West that afternoon. At that time, the drink was discovered.

The former bus driver told the media outlet that the print on the can she grabbed saying it is alcohol is extremely small and at the bottom of the can.

“For people like me that don’t drink — how are they going to know this is alcohol?” she asked.

Chemotherapy patients are typically not supposed to drink alcohol. They are told to stay hydrated due to the treatments.

Tasting food and drinks is close to impossible when undergoing chemo. My sister had the same problem.

— CL (@Chlchl108) October 7, 2023

Due to her non-drinking, the Egyptian national allegedly did not understand what “hard” meant on the can.

A number of parents believed Hanna and one told News12LI, “I think it was a very honest mistake.”

She called her “sweet” and “kind.”

“I can’t imagine she would ever do anything to harm them,” the parent commented.

Superintendent of Schools for Smithtown Central School District Mark Secaur took a hard stance on the incident, telling the New York Post last week, “This alleged conduct is completely unacceptable, and the driver has been immediately removed.”

Highly unlikely she would intentionally do something that would put her job in jeopardy considering the need for medical benefits to support her chemotherapy. A very sad story.

— Glenn R (@glennacc3) October 8, 2023

“It was confirmed that an alcoholic beverage was on board, and the driver was promptly taken from the bus, and a different driver completed the route,” he wrote Wednesday in a statement to parents.

Hanna says that losing her job has stripped her of the one bright spot in her life.

“I have been crying and crying, I don’t even have any more tears. It was just a mistake, it was a mistake,” she said.

Smithtown school district official declared that she “will no longer transport any Smithtown student” even after being let off the hook legally, according to the Daily Mail.

“Our students’ safety is of the utmost importance to the Smithtown Central School District. We will remain steadfast in our efforts to create a safe environment for all our students,” Secaur stated.

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