Jury picked for minivan driver charged in fatal Clark County school bus crash
Apr. 29—A 12-panel jury with three alternate jurors was seated Monday for the man charged with causing a crash with a Northwestern school bus, killing one child and injuring dozens more elementary school last summer.
Hermanio Joseph, 36, faces first-degree felony involuntary manslaughter and fourth-degree felony vehicular homicide charges. If convicted, he could spend six to 12 months in jail for the vehicular homicide charge and anywhere from three to 16.5 years in prison for the involuntary manslaughter charge, Clark County Prosecutor Dan Driscoll has said.
Prosecutors and the defense will share opening statements with jurors Tuesday morning.
Investigators said Joseph, a Haitian immigrant, was driving a 2010 Honda Odyssey about 8:15 a.m. Aug. 22 in the 4100 block of Troy Road (Ohio 41) at Lawrenceville when his minivan went left of the center line into the path of an oncoming school bus with 52 students and the driver aboard.
The bus driver attempted to avoid the Honda by driving onto the shoulder, but the bus still collided with the minivan. The bus and van went off the side of the road, with the bus rolling over.
Aiden Clark, 11, was ejected and died on the scene, and another student suffered life-threatening injuries. About two dozen more children were injured and taken to area medical centers for treatment.
Joseph presented to law enforcement a driver's license from Mexico, which was invalid due to his immigration status, which assistant county prosecutor Greg Morris said previously is under investigation. Joseph also had an Ohio identification card. The man is originally from Haiti.
Joseph has been in the Clark County Jail since his arrest in August. He arrived to court with a large group of loved ones.
The crash happened on the first day of school for Northwestern elementary students.
Joseph's attorneys previously filed motions to dismiss the case and to move it outside of Clark County. Lawyers Terry Hart and Cathy Weithman argued the first offense, a crime of driving without a valid license, is a minor misdemeanor, and argued it would be "impossible to seat an impartial jury due to media and other publicity."
Clark County Common Pleas Judge Douglas Rastatter denied the motions.
Jurors were asked questions including the school district in which they live, if they have had interactions with members with the Haitian community, their sentiments regarding the Haitian community and if Joseph being in custody has any bearing on their ability to be fair and impartial.
Springfield has seen an influx of approximately 10,000 Haitian immigrants in roughly the last five years.
