BASTROP, Texas – The driver of a concrete truck that struck a Hays CISD bus head-on last year, resulting in the death of a student and the driver of another vehicle, has been sentenced to 18 years in prison.
Jerry Hernandez, 42, was sentenced on two counts of manslaughter on Thursday for the March 22, 2024, crash on State Highway 21 in western Bastrop County. He pleaded guilty to the charges, court records show.
The crash happened as the bus was taking pre-K students from Tom Green Elementary School and 11 adults back to campus following a field trip to the Bastrop Zoo.
Hays CISD released videos from cameras on that school bus that show the oncoming concrete truck drift across the double line in front of the bus.
The bus driver steered to the right to try to avoid hitting the truck, but they collided head-on with the truck about halfway into the lane, the video shows.
One student on the bus, Ulises Rodriguez Montoya, 5, died in the crash.
The driver of a Dodge Charger that struck the back of the bus was also killed. He was identified as University of Texas student Ryan Wallace, 33, from Bastrop.
In a statement on Thursday, Hays CISD said it is “grateful for all of the people involved in seeking accountability from the person who caused the school bus crash...”
“However, today, as it is on all days, the district’s focus remains on lifting up those who suffered trauma and loss,” the statement read, in part. (Read the full statement below.)
Records: Driver admitted to marijuana, cocaine use and little sleep
According to an arrest affidavit, Hernandez told Texas Department of Public Safety troopers that he smoked marijuana, used cocaine and only had about three hours of sleep before the crash.
>> Truck driver had prohibited CDL, failed multiple drug tests before fatal bus crash, affidavit states
The affidavit also states that his employer, FJM Concrete, failed to look up his drug test record and properly vet him when they hired him.
Records from the federal Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse, which keeps data on commercial driver’s license (CDL) holders, showed that Hernandez refused a reasonable suspicion test in September 2020, the affidavit states. The test should have warranted that he be referred to a substance abuse professional for evaluation, KTBC reported.
“He should have been removed from performing safety-sensitive functions at this point by the company he was driving for at that time,” investigators said.
In follow-up tests, Hernandez tested positive for marijuana in 2022 and for cocaine in 2023, resulting in a prohibited license.
However, Hernandez’s CDL was still eligible in Texas due to a loophole.
“... State driver’s licensing agencies are not required to downgrade CDL statuses until 11/18/2024 according to changes in the Federal Register,” the affidavit states.
FJM Concrete did not verify the status of his CDL through the Clearinghouse, the affidavit states.
Read HCISD’s full statement below:
Hays CISD is grateful for all of the people involved in seeking accountability from the person who caused the school bus crash that claimed two precious lives in March 2024. The work to bring people to justice is never easy.
However, today, as it is on all days, the district’s focus remains on lifting up those who suffered trauma and loss. There is nothing that can ever bring back Ulises Montoya Rodriguez or Ryan Wallace. And, there is nothing that can ever erase the wounds, both physical and emotional, incurred on that fateful and tragic day.
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