Atlanta, Indiana — Earlier this week, a school bus got into an accident with a utility pole in rural Atlanta, Indiana and fled the scene. Of the 23 students on the school bus, 7 were injured and required medical attention of some sort. The bus driver, later identified as Janet Shaw, was eventually charged by police for being under the influence of drugs at the time.
This accident happened on Monday, September 21, 2015.
It’s not clear how the wreck took place, but the location given by the police was 286th Street and Cicero Creek Road, where the road turns sharply to the north.
Janet Shaw was reportedly driving her Hamilton County ISD school bus south on 286th Street that morning when she swerved off the roadway and hopped the curb, hitting a pole in the process. After the accident, instead of calling the authorities, Shaw proceeded to drive to Hamilton Heights Middle School.
Once there, she was taken from the bus and arrested. Later, the police said that she was under the influence of something, possibly medical prescription drugs (like painkillers). She also had in her purse several strong drugs for pain relief and nausea.
Map of the Accident
Commentary:
It’s a good thing that this accident didn’t hurt anyone seriously, but this driver is still facing some pretty serious consequences. My first question: Who in the world hired this driver? Did that school district do a background check or even a toxicology test on the driver to test for past drug usage? Does the district have any policy in place to check up on their drivers, like yearly physicals?
It seems like something this severe shouldn’t have slipped through the cracks, and I’m a little skeptical that the school district that hired this driver did everything they could to keep their drivers in check.
— Grossman Law Offices
