Thousands of students send school bus texts every day on their way from classroom to bedroom. But police in Connecticut are sending the message this week that one person aboard the school bus should never be texting: the driver.
According to NBC Connecticut, police in Trumbull, CT arrested 47-year-old Evelyn Guzman after an on-board surveillance video caught her sending text messages while behind the wheel. Guzman turned herself in Wednesday. Police believe that, between April 6, 2010 and May 15, 2010, Guzman sent and received 1,068 text messages while driving the bus full of school children.
Detectives launched the investigation after the arrest of Guzman's daughter in May 2010. The daughter, Jennifer Davila, 24, was charged with assaulting a special needs student on her mother's school bus. Davila worked as the bus monitor.
Texting while driving has become a major safety hazard on American roadways, launching national ad campaigns and even state legislation. According to the Institute for Highway Safety, drivers that use cell phones are four times as likely to get
into crashes serious enough to injure themselves.
Guzman has been charged with risk of injury to a minor and reckless endangerment. She is free on $1,500 bond and will be in court March 25.
Source: NBC Connecticut
School Bus Driver Arrested For Texting While Driving
Mar 18, 2011, 10:17 by John Steele