Witness: Bus crash caused by texting driver

Posted at: 10/26/2009 5:44 PM | Updated at: 10/27/2009 7:35 AM
By: Antoinette Antonio, Eyewitness News 4; Matthew Kappus, KOB.com

Hauser's car was crushed between the bus and a pillar

Witnesses think the driver of a car was text messaging on a cell phone when he drove in the path of a city bus.  

In a police report obtained by Eyewitness News 4 Monday, officers say 24-year-old Andrew Hauser was not cited at the time of the accident, even though witnesses say he had a Blackberry in his hand.

Officers say Hauser turned his car in front of the bus at Central and Interstate 25 Oct. 17, causing the crash. Hauser’s car was pinned between the bus and an interstate pillar, sending him to the hospital.

A witness told officers he rushed to the car and saw “the left hand of the driver sticking out of the crushed vehicle.” He also saw the driver’s “Blackberry cell phone in that left hand and noticed there was a text message on the phone.”

According to the report, Hauser was not given a ticket for using his cell phone while driving. But police say they were not going to get into the legal issues until the driver’s injuries were taken care of.

“No one wants to immediately say 'It's your fault and here's a ticket for it,” said APD’s Nadine Hamby. “So in this case, the individual was treated, was taken to the hospital and then the officer is going to do follow-up by writing a criminal complaint and mandating him to go to court.”

The officer has a year to file the charges. Police can cite the driver for failing to yield, not obeying the traffic light and driver inattention. As for the cell phone citation, police say that has to be proven in court because an officer didn’t witness Hauser on the phone.

Print Story