Two high school students cross paths on the 57 bus in Oakland, California. Their lives will never be the same.  Richard is fooling around on the 57 bus with his friends when they dare him to touch a lighter to Sacha’s skirt while Sacha is asleep on the back seat of the bus.  Richard foolishly thinks that the flame will go out or that Sacha will awaken and put out the flame.  But that’s not what happens.  Sacha’s skirt erupts in flames. Sacha is severely burned, and Richard is later arrested and charged with two hate crimes. The district attorney decides to try Richard as an adult.  He is facing life in prison for this impetuous act. Meanwhile, Sacha is recovering from third-degree burns on over twenty-two percent of their body.  The 57 Bus: A True Story of Two Teenagers and the Crime That Changed Their Lives explores topics of gender, race, juvenile crime, and forgiveness.