James Willie Jones’ 13-year-old daughter has cerebral palsy. So maybe you can understand why he responded angrily when he discovered bullies on the school bus harassing her both physically and verbally. He boarded the bus and began yelling at the bullies. Now he faces criminal charges.

Jones was charged last week with disorderly conduct and disturbing a school function for the Sept. 3 tirade in Sanford, just north of Orlando. He later posted $2,000 bail and was ordered to stay away from the driver and county school buses.

His attorney, Deianna Brown, said she is hoping to get the charges dropped or reduced, and she’s offered to have her client give speeches against bullying as community service

What were these charming little cretins doing to his daughter, whose only crime was standing up for another child? They put a condom on her head, smacked her, twisted her ear, and shouted insults at her. And this apparently isn’t the first time she’s been bullied, either.

Jones’ wife, Deborah McFadden-Jones, said they noticed a change in their daughter’s behavior since school began this year. She left messages with a school guidance counselor, she said, but never heard back.

Jones has apologized incessantly for his actions, but why should he? His 13-year-old daughter, inflicted with cerebral palsy, was being physically and verbally abused by bullies. Neither the school bus driver nor education officials did anything about the abuse. So the father should apologize for yelling at the cretins harassing her?

The bullies deserve a swift kick in the ass, which evidently they’ve never received from their parents. The father should be thanked — not charged. But if the slimy, abuse-condoning prosecutors refuse to drop the charges, Jones shouldn’t plead guilty. Proceed to a trial by jury and establish a defense fund. Watch the donations flow in, and we’ll see if there are 12 Floridians willing to convict this man for rightfully defending his daughter.