STAR-TELEGRAM (Dallas, Texas) 12 September 03 Testimony on snake heard in fatal bus wreck trial (Bill Miller)
Dallas: The theory that a snake may have startled the driver of a bus that crashed near Terrell killing five people in June 2002 was explored Friday during the trial of a lawsuit against the bus company's owner.
Truck driver Ruben Vasquez was the first to come upon the scene of the June 24, 2002, wreck on Interstate 20 that killed four children from Metro Church in Garland and bus driver Ernest Carter. Dozens of other children were injured in the crash.
Vasquez testified Friday how he carried a girl with a compound leg fracture from the wrecked bus that was carrying the youths to a church camp in Louisiana. He said he was trying to comfort her when she suddenly started screaming.
"I thought it was because of her leg," Vasquez said. "But it was the snake."
Vasquez said the serpent, soaked in diesel fuel, was slithering toward the girl from beneath the front part of wreckage.
The truck driver said he grabbed a board that was alongside the interstate and used it to kill the snake. Then he picked it up by the tail and flung it away from the wreck.
During opening arguments on Thursday, Rob Miller, attorney for defendant Eric Rockmore, asked the eight-member jury to keep an open mind about all issues in the case, including the possibility of a "sudden emergency" that could have been caused by the appearance of a snake.
Rockmore, owner of Discovery Tours, is accused of negligence in the civil trial brought by the family of 16-year-old Lindsay Kimmons, one of four victims.
Investigators have ruled that Carter, 51, was fatigued, distracted and under the influence of cocaine and Valium during the crash. They discounted the possibility a snake caused the crash.
Rockmore testified that he had a subcontract with Green's Transportation to help carry the youth group at Metro Church in Garland to the church camp.
It was the first outing for Discovery Tours to have Carter behind a wheel. Rockmore said Carter agreed to drive early on June 24 after one of Rockmore's regular drivers didn't show up to work.
Rockmore said he wasn't formally introduced to Carter until December 2001, but he had seen him driving buses around the United States for several years before that.
The first time was during the Million Man March in Washington D.C. during the fall of 1995. Rockmore said Carter offered to drive him along with other bus drivers back to their hotels, and he was impressed with how Carter handled a 45-foot bus.
"He kind of surprised me because he was one of the few drivers who would get off the bus, help people on and off, and help with the luggage" Rockmore said. "He was one of the few that I saw who would do what I would do."
Rockmore said Carter never appeared to be high on drugs, and he had no records or statements from previous bus companies indicating the man had a drug problem.
Testimony is scheduled to resume on Tuesday, with Judge Nikki DeShazo presiding.
Testimony on snake heard in fatal bus wreck trial

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• TX Press: Testimony on snake heard in fatal bus wreck trial - W von Papineäu, Thu Sep 18 12:04:44 2003