For that -- for refusing the gunman 's demand to take two schoolchildren around 4 p.m. Tuesday , then to face the horrific consequence -- Poland is being called a hero ; by officials in the school system he worked for , by the people of Dale County , by his family . Bus driver Charles Poland , 28 , was killed while on a route in southeastern Alabama . He was shot dead after refusing a woman 's demands to have two children . His relatives say Poland was a gentle man who loved the buses he drove and others . He is now being remembered as a a selfless man who ` ` made the ultimate sacrifice ''
Bus driver Charles Poland , 28 , was killed while on a route in southeastern Alabama . He was shot dead after refusing a woman 's demands to have two children . His relatives say Poland was a gentle man who loved the buses he drove and others . He is now being remembered as a a selfless man who ` ` made the ultimate sacrifice ''