A Texas truck driver accused of being under the influence of drugs when he crashed into a bus transporting the North Central Texas College softball teamwill stand trial on four counts of first degree manslaughter.
After considering testimony at a preliminary hearing in May and reviewing legal briefs from prosecutors and defense attorneys, Murray County AssociateDistrict Judge Aaron Duck ruled yesterday that there is sufficient evidence to order Russell Wayne Staley, 54, to stand trial on manslaughtercharges stemming from the deaths of four women who were killed in the crash.
The incident occurred on September 26, 2014, as the North Central Texas College women's softball team returned home to Gainesville, Texas, following ascrimmage at Southern Nazarene University in Bethany. As the team traveled south through the Arbuckle Mountains, a northbound tractor-trailer truck,driven by Staley, crossed a median and struck the women's bus, shearing off its side and killing four members of the team. Reports say Staley neverattempted to brake or avoid the collision.
Staley told investigators that he was distracted at the time of the crash by reaching into a cooler to try to get a drink. However, investigators founda pipe containing residue of synthetic marijuana in Staley's truck and blood tests showed traces of synthetic marijuana in the driver's system.
A National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) report indicated that probable causes of the crash included failure to control his vehicle "due to incapacitation likely stemming from his use of synthetic cannabinoids."
The NTSB noted that Staley has a history of K-2 (synthetic marijuana) use and that he sometimes had seizures when using the synthetic drug.
Though the judge found "more than sufficient" evidence for trial, he noted that the prosecution faces some challenges--notably, that K-2 was not an illegalsubstance at the time of the crash, and that a trooper's testimony that the defendant was "incoherent" following the crash could attributed to headinjury, and not just drug intoxication. Still, the judge said there is a legal presumption that the state will "strengthen its case" prior to trial,and that these challenges are not enough to overcome the need for trial since the prosecution is not required to prove its case beyond a reasonabledoubt at the preliminary hearing.
