West Fargo bus driver pleads guilty to DUI

The bus driver who was arrested on suspicion of drunken driving just before picking up children at a West Fargo elementary school in February pleaded guilty on Wednesday.

Steve Sauer, 59, pleaded guilty in West Fargo Municipal Court to actual physical control of a vehicle while intoxicated, said his attorney, Willie Kirschner.

Sauer was fined $550 and ordered to do 40 hours of community service.

Sauer was arrested after his bus left 32nd Avenue West on Feb. 2 and became stuck in the snow.

Tests later showed Sauer had a blood alcohol level of 0.27 percent at the time of the incident.

After his arrest, Sauer was fired from Valley Bus Co., a company that contracts for school bus service with the West Fargo School District.