INDIANAPOLIS — Police here have released a report that indicates the school bus driver involved in a crash that killed an elementary school principal on Jan. 26 was distracted and didn't engage the parking brake, IndyStar reports.
The report states that bus driver Christine Beeler left the driver’s seat of the bus without engaging the parking brake, causing the bus to roll forward, according to the newspaper. The report also states that Beeler was “distracted,” but does not indicate what took her attention away from her duties, IndyStar reports.
As Susan Jordan, the principal of Amy Beverland Elementary School, was supervising the school’s dismissal and standing with a group of students, the bus, which had been stationary, suddenly accelerated and jumped the curb, injuring two 10-year-old students and killing Jordan. Jordan was able to push students out of the way before the bus struck her. Many have called Jordan a hero for her actions.
A spokesperson for the Marion County prosecutor’s office told the newspaper that the incident is still under investigation, and that it has not been determined yet whether Beeler will be charged. It is not clear whether Beeler is still employed by the Metropolitan School District of Lawrence Township, according to IndyStar. District officials had told the newspaper that Beeler had no history of discipline problems or moving violations and was considered a “model employee.”
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