Woman accused of crashing school bus while intoxicated
The sheriff’s office says students on the bus told their parents, who then told school personnel.
A Hamilton Heights bus driver is behind bars after an early morning crash in a school bus on September 21. She now faces a long list of criminal charges in Hamilton County, including 21 felony counts of operating while intoxicated endangering a minor.
A school bus driver was arrested on Monday after allegedly driving off the roadway and striking a guide wire for a utility pole.
According to authorities, concerned parents contacted school officials after students on the bus alerted them from their cell phones.
Shaw was immediately removed from the bus as it arrived at the school.
Seven students complained of pain and headaches and went to the nurse’s office.
The bus had minor damage, and the impact from the collision caused power lines to come down and a transformer to malfunction, resulting in a local power outage. No serious injuries were reported, and the bus sustained minor damage. Power has since been restored.
After the crash, the driver was one of those praised for helping get the kids out safely – as were members of the school safety patrol on the bus and the deputies and onlookers who rushed to the scene after the crash.
School officials said Shaw, of Arcadia, Ind., was suspended, and her termination will be recommended at the next school board meeting.
Janet Kay Shaw, 53, from Arcadia, was driving a morning bus route for the Hamilton Heights School Corporation on Monday at 7:30 a.m. As with all bus drivers at HHSC and at districts across Indiana, she was subject to mandatory random drug testing screenings. Police did not say what controlled substances were involved.
She is being held at the Hamilton County Jail on a bond of $12,500. “She had passed all previous drug screenings”, said a statement from the school corporation. Hillsborough County’s school buses transport 90,000 students each day, he said, and an incident like this one was a first in his 26 years with the school district.
We are thankful that parents contacted HHSC to let us know of the incident, so that the driver could be removed from the route immediately.