The man behind the wheel of the concrete truck that collided with a bus filled with pre-kindergarten college students final week in Texas, killing one scholar and one driver, had taken leisure medicine hours earlier than the collision, in response to reporting by the Austin-American Statesman.
More than 40 pre-Ok college students and 11 adults from Tom Green Elementary had been making their means again to highschool after a area journey to the Bastrop County Zoo on March 22 when the concrete truck driver veered into the lane and struck the bus round 2 p.m.
Thirty-two folks had been taken to hospitals, with dozens of scholars and lecturers reporting accidents, Austin-Travis County Emergency Medical Services advised the Austin-American Statesman, a part of the USA TODAY Network.
Ulises Rodriguez Montoya, a pre-Ok scholar at Tom Green Elementary School and 33-year-old Ryan Wallace, a doctoral scholar on the University of Texas had been killed on account of the crash.
Texas Department of Public Safety advised USA TODAY that the driving force, 42-year-old Jerry Hernandez was arrested on a cost for criminally negligent murder on Friday.
“He was additionally arrested on an unrelated warrant for a bond violation out of Hays County. Both warrants had been served this afternoon at a residence in Bastrop County and he was taken into custody with out incident,” Deon Cockrell, Texas DPS sergeant confirmed.
Here’s what we all know.
Driver initially denied utilizing medicine earlier than the crash, admitting it in a while
Hernandez participated in a sequence of conversations with investigators, initially telling them that he had not consumed any “illicit substances within the week earlier than the crash however did have a historical past of utilizing marijuana and cocaine,” in response to the Statesman.
He mentioned he swerved into the bus’s path “as a result of a driver of one other car two automotive lengths forward of him had immediately hit their brakes.” Hernandez refused to offer a blood pattern to legislation enforcement on the crash web site, investigators mentioned.
Hernandez advised investigators he was on his means home on the time of the crash and that previous to leaving the job web site, he took a 15-minute nap, the Statesman reported.
He had solely gotten three hours of sleep the night time earlier than the crash, smoking marijuana round 10 p.m. that night time and consuming a “small quantity of cocaine” a pair hours later, at 1 a.m., in response to an affidavit obtained by the Statesman.
Hernandez had failed a few drug checks in the previous couple of years, as soon as in December 2022 for marijuana and as soon as in April 2023 for cocaine, the Statesman reported. He was initially requested to check in September 2020 by an employer, who had cheap suspicion that he was on medicine however he refused a take a look at, in response to the Statesman.
Bryan Goertz, Bastrop District Attorney mentioned Thursday that it “could be difficult to prove impairment” even with the driving force’s admission.
An investigator with the Texas Department of Public Safety advised Goertz that he did not imagine Hernandez was impaired on the time, however that he was sleepy and certain nodded off whereas driving, the Statesman reported. Goertz advised the Statesman that if he had “dozed off while driving, then there is “nothing criminal” about it. Especially, if the impairment can’t be proved.
Hernandez gave the impression to be “unaware of the magnitude of the crash he was concerned in and by no means talked about hanging a college bus,” the affidavit states.
Francisco Martinez, the proprietor of the FJM Concrete Pumping LLC truck declined to touch upon the crash, referring all inquiries to his lawyer, who didn’t instantly reply to inquiries, in response to the Statesman.
Martinez advised investigators that “he had not verified the standing of Hernandez’s industrial license or the driving force’s historical past with the Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse earlier than using him.”
“Although Mr. Martinez was unaware of Mr. Hernandez’s previous drug associated points, Mr. Hernandez ought to have been conscious of his standing by means of the clearinghouse,” the affidavit mentioned.
School releases video from college bus, group raises funds for college students and lecturers impacted
Video reveals heart-stopping moments from lethal Texas college bus crash
The Hays college district launched the video to the Statesman as a part of a public data request for footage of the crash.
Video footage collected by the Statesman reveals the bus “traveling in the only westbound lane on the highway and the concrete truck driving in the left eastbound lane just before 1:59 p.m.”
The concrete truck veers into the westbound site visitors lane seconds later. The bus driver tries to keep away from the upcoming crash by barely shifting onto the shoulder of the street earlier than being hit, the Statesman reported.
The video captures a person on the bus cry out simply earlier than the truck crashes into the group.
The concrete truck handed the entrance of the bus, leaving from view of the bus’s entrance digital camera momentarily earlier than hitting it. The bus flipped over, touchdown on the driving force’s facet and dealing with the other way by which it was touring, in response to the Statesman.
Metal chunks, papers and even college students had been despatched flying on account of the impression. The video data the group crying out in concern after the bus lands, the Statesman reported.
The bus the group was on didn’t have any seatbelts, both. Tim Savoy, a Hays college district spokesman advised the Statesman that there have been “no seatbelts because it was a 2011 model. School buses made since 2017 have seatbelts.”
Video time stamps point out that all the crash occurred in lower than 10 seconds, in response to the Statesman. Cars driving close to the bus pulled off the facet of the freeway, leaping out of their autos and working in direction of the bus.
One digital camera captured somebody calling out, “911,” and one other person crying, “Oh my God,” the Statesman reported.
The Hays group has come collectively within the week following the crash, elevating money for the households of scholars and lecturers concerned within the crash.
GoFundMe fundraiser pages have been created for Ulises, Wallace, for a trainer with severe accidents and for all of the households, the Statesman reported.
Gov. Greg Abbott referred to as for Texans to hope for the victims of the crash. He mentioned he’d spoken with district Superintendent Eric Wright “and supplied the state’s full help as they assist their group by means of this tragedy.”
“I thank the primary responders and legislation enforcement officers who had been on the scene instantly and proceed to assist their fellow Texans who had been injured,” Abbott mentioned.
