A Hamilton Heights bus driver is facing dozens of charges for allegedly crashing a school bus while intoxicated and then continuing on her route.
Police said 53-year-old Janet Kay Shaw was driving a Hamilton Heights school bus southbound on Leonard Road just before 7:30 a.m. on Sept. 21 when the bus drove off the roadway at approximately 40 miles per hour. The bus struck a guide wire to a utility pole and then traveled along the edge of the roadway before returning to the pavement.
Shaw allegedly then continued the bus route, picking up additional students before delivering them to Hamilton Heights Middle School.
Police were notified after several students among the 21 onboard the bus at the time alerted their parents and school personnel. Students were treated for headaches and minor aches and pains, though none was taken out of school for the day.
The collision also resulted in downed power lines and a transformer malfunction, causing a power outage in the area of the crash.
Shaw was preliminarily charged with six counts of leaving the scene of a crash, one count of reckless driving, two counts of possession of a controlled substance, one count of operating while intoxicated and 21 counts of operating while intoxicated endangering a minor – a level 6 felony.
Shaw was being held at the Hamilton County Jail on a $12,500 bond.
