The Yellowstone County Attorney's Office is questioning Billings students who were on a school bus that hit a West High School student on Friday morning.
The driver is suspected of driving under the influence of alcohol. County Attorney Dennis Paxinos says the office is questioning a dozen high school students who were on Timothy Whalen's bus.
Billings police say just after 7:30 Friday morning, Whalen hit a 15-year-old west high school student who was crossing the street at Sante Fe Drive and Central Avenue. He left the scene to drop off the remaining students. When he returned, police say they suspected he was under the influence of alcohol.
Billings School District 2 Superintendent Jack Copps says first student registered Whalen's blood alcohol level at 0.18. That's four times the legal limit of a commercial driver, which is 0.04. Whalen has not been charged, but prosecutors are looking at a potential felony criminal endangerment charge instead of DUI.
Felony criminal endangerment comes with up to a 10 year prison sentence. Authorities have not released the name of the female victim.
(from September 26, 2009)
A bus driver who was behind the wheel when his school bus hit a student near Billings West High School Friday morning is facing possible DUI charges.
The crash happened just after 7:30 a.m. near the intersection of Central Avenue and Santa Fe Drive. Police identified the driver as Timothy Whalen, 53, of billings.
Whalen told police at the scene -that he didn't see the student because the sun was in his eyes and police say Whalen continued up the street after the accident to drop off the students in his bus.
Meanwhile, a witness stopped and helped the girl, until emergency crews arrived. When Whalen returned to the scene police say they smelled alcohol on him and conducted a field sobriety test.
First Student Transportation says Whalen's blood alcohol level was .18 which is more than four times the legal limit for a commercial driver.
The 15-year old victim was taken to St. Vincent Healthcare where she was treated for cuts to her left side, as well as a possible fracture of her leg. Billings School Superintendent Jack Copps says his first concern was making sure the student was okay.
Billings Police Sergeant Kevin Unruh says as yet, Whalen has not been issued any citations. He told us that the case has been turned over to the Yellowstone County Attorney's Office, which is now looking at possible felony charges.
(from September 25, 2009)
Billings Police say an early Friday morning school bus accident has now been turned over to investigators.
Sgt. Kevin Unruh says police responded to Central Ave. and Santa Fe Dr., just after 7:30 a.m. Police say the bus driver, Timothy Whalen, 53, of Billings, was driving eastbound on Central , when he turned right into an intersection and ran a red light, side-swiping a 15-year-old girl.
Whalen told police, he didn't see the pedestrian because the sun was in his eyes. He continued up the street after the accident and came back to the scene. A witness stopped and helped the victim into her car, until emergency crews arrived.
Whalen then proceeded to drop off the remaining passengers on the bus and came back to the scene about 15 minutes later after First Student, the contracted bus company, told him to return. Police smelled alcohol on Whalen and he took a breathalyzer test and a field sobriety test. Superintendent Jack Copps says Whalen's blood alcohol level was .18, more than four times the legal limit of a commercial driver, which is .04.
Police say Whalen was taken to the Driving Under the Influence Center at the Yellowstone County Detention Facility and released to First Student managers. Whalen has not been issued with any citations. The victim was taken to St. Vincent Healthcare and was treated for cuts to her left side, as well as a possible fracture.
Supt. Jack Copps says his first thoughts this morning were making sure the victim was okay.
"The second piece of this is just anger and disbelief. How in the world could something like that happen? First of all, why would any adult even think of consuming alcohol prior to driving a school bus," Copps said.
He says School District 2 is working with First Student to find out if Whalen was properly hired. Copps believes that Whalen will never transport students in SD2. He says safety is paramount and he wants to get to the bottom of this very soon.
