Movie on Bus Hijacking Takes Detour With Facts

By Cheryl Gamble

Filmmakers have used a little dramatic license in turning the story of a Miami school bus hijacking into a made-for-television movie.

"Sudden Terror: The Hijacking of School Bus 17" is the story of bus driver Alicia Chapman. Ms. Chapman was taking 13 pre-K-3 students to school last Nov. 2 when a man distraught over a $15,000 tax debt and claiming to have an explosive device strapped to his chest forced his way onto the bus.

A police sniper shot and killed the man, 42-year-old Catalino Sang, after a low-speed chase through Dade County, Fla. The bomb turned out to be harmless, and the bus driver became somewhat...