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Family of boy hit by bus in Jamaica Plain sues BPS bus contractor
Boston Mayor Michelle Wu has already called for an independent investigation into Transdev, Boston Public Schools' troubled bus operator.
The family of an autistic Boston Public Schools student is suing the district’s transportation contractor for more than $20 million after he and a school aide were hit by a school bus while walking on the sidewalk in Jamaica Plain.
Reginald Oates Jr., 8, was walking on a sidewalk outside the Curley K-8 School on Dec. 6 when a stationary school bus, driven by Vitnoy Laguerre, pulled up onto the sidewalk and into the school yard, according to a complaint filed in Suffolk Superior Court Tuesday.
Both Laguerre and Transdev, the bus operator, are named as defendants in the lawsuit. Transdev is accused of “gross negligence” by not supervising or training its employees as well as “systemic safety failures,” according to a release from law firm Sweeney Merrigan.
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Laguerre is also accused of lying about how the crash occurred, according to the complaint. He allegedly told police that he swerved to avoid an oncoming vehicle but “mistakenly pressed the gas pedal instead of the brake.”
Laguerre stated a few days after the crash that it “occurred because of a mechanical issue (steering),” the attached police report read.
However, according to dashboard camera footage shared by the law firm representing the family, there was no oncoming traffic when Laguerre appeared to open his eyes from a nap and drive the vehicle into Oates and Bell.
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The complaint notes that inspections of the school bus revealed no mechanical defects, and Laguerre was cited for unsafe operation of a vehicle and operating on the sidewalk. (A copy of the video, which shows sensitive content, is available here.)
The bus ran over Oates, a third grader, and fractured his femur, according to the complaint, which required two months in-patient care and rehabilitation care and multiple surgeries. Jermaine Bell, the school aid, was pinned against a fence, according to a police report from the incident.
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“This frightening event almost took my child’s life,” Cynthia Davis, Oates’s guardian, said in a statement. “It is shocking to read the string of lies that the driver gave to the police. This should never happen. The videos don’t lie. And it’s downright shameful that this school bus company has a track record of hitting and killing children all over Boston.”
Laguerre was employed by Transdev, which BPS has used for its transportation services since 2013. The company hires, trains, and manages around 750 school bus drivers in Boston and has been at the center of at least 15 personal injury lawsuits, The Boston Globe reported. The company did not return a request for comment about the lawsuit or Laguerre’s current employment status.
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The lawsuit comes after a 5-year-old was killed by a school bus also operated by Transdev in Hyde Park in April. That driver had an expired school bus certificate. Boston Mayor Michelle Wu then ordered an independent safety investigation into the company in May.
“We are working with the City to support the review process and are fully cooperating with all aspects of the investigation,” Mitun Seguin, vice president for marketing and communications at Transdev, said in a statement at the time.
J. Tucker Merrigan, managing partner at Sweeney Merrigan, said Transdev is paid more than $100 million by the City of Boston annually.
“Transdev has clearly failed its responsibility to hire, train and supervise its drivers for the safety of Boston school children,” Merrigan said in a statement. “Even if this brave young man is able to physically recover, the emotional scars of this experience will never go away.”
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