Concrete truck driver arrested in connection with deadly crash involving school bus in Texas

BASTROP, Texas — A man who was driving a concrete truck involved in a deadly accident in Bastrop County, Texas, last week is facing charges.

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Jerry Hernandez, 42, was arrested on Friday, the Texas Department of Public Safety confirmed to KXAN. He was arrested on a warrant.

The crash happened on State Highway 21 near Caldwell Road, the news outlet reported.

Hernandez was charged with criminally negligent homicide, The Associated Press reported. He was also arrested on an unrelated warrant for a bond violation out of another county, DPS said, according to KXAN.

The crash happened on March 22. Ulises Rodriguez Montoya, 5, and Ryan Wallace, 33, died in the crash, the AP reported. Wallace was driving in another vehicle that was hit by the concrete truck. Montoya was on the bus at the time of the crash. Four people were taken by helicopter and six others were taken by ambulance to the hospital.

Hernandez allegedly admitted to investigators that he smoked marijuana the night before the crash, KXAN reported. He also allegedly admitted to using cocaine around 1 a.m. the day of the crash.

According to court records obtained by KVUE, Hernandez allegedly used cocaine and had been operating the truck on less than three hours of sleep.

He reportedly told investigators that he swerved his truck to avoid a car that broke in front of his truck, the news outlet reported. However, Hays CISD released footage of the crash that did not support Hernandez’s claim.

If Hernandez is found guilty, he faces up to two years in jail and a $10,000 fine, according to the AP.

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