According to a report by the Idaho State Police, the driver of a Kuna school bus pulled out in front of the dump truck and caused a fatal Dec. 5 collision in Nampa, west of Boise. The impact of the crash killed 11-year-old Daniel Cook and injured four other students.
The ISP investigation found that bus driver Debra Boatwright failed to yield at a stop sign before proceeding into the intersection and into the path of a dump truck that was not required to stop, the Idaho Statesman reported.
The Kuna Joint School District No. 3 said in a statement today that Boatwright is on leave pending the completed investigation.
Canyon County Prosecutor Bryan Taylor will decide whether any charges will be filed against Boatwright or Charles Samuel Derby, the truck driver. County officials said they are awaiting results of blood tests done on both drivers. The report states Derby had used marijuana but does not indicate if investigators believed he was under the drug’s influence that morning.
Investigators believe Boatwright came to a full stop at the stop sign before pulling into the intersection in front of Derby’s truck, said Teresa Baker, ISP spokeswoman. Boatwright then lost control of the 1998 Blue Bird bus and spun around. The bus’ left rear wheel struck a stop sign and street sign on the northeast corner of the intersection before stopping, the report said.
Cook, a sixth-grade student at Crimson Point Elementary School, was seated in the eleventh row on the passenger side of the bus, near where the bus was struck. Twelve students between the ages of 5 and 11 were on the bus at the time of the accident.
Reportedly, at least three of the four children who were hospitalized after the accident were seated near Cook. A 10-year-old girl was seated a row ahead of him, a 9-year-old boy was in the eighth row on the passenger side, and an 8-year-old boy was on the driver’s side of the seventh row. The report did not indicate where one other 8-year-old boy who was hospitalized was seated.
Right after the crash, Idaho police said Derby’s 1974 Mack truck had several equipment violations, but none of those were listed in the report. No other contributing factor is mentioned in the report besides the bus driver’s failure to yield.
