A Tennessee school bus driver faces 21 additional charges seven months after authorities say he lost control of the vehicle and crashed into a tree and telephone pole, killing six elementary school children.
Prosecutors added 14 counts of reckless aggravated assault and seven counts of assault against Johnthony Walker, 24, the Chattanooga Times Free Press reported.
Walker already faced six counts of vehicular homicide, four counts of reckless aggravated assault and one count each of reckless endangerment, reckless driving and use of a portable electronic device by a school bus driver.
That brings the total number of charges to 34.
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Walker was not driving his normal route in the Nov. 21 crash that killed six Woodmore Elementary School students in Chattanooga, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution previously reported. Thirty-seven children were on board the bus.
No alcohol or drugs were involved in the crash, but speed was believed to be a factor, The AJC previously reported. Hamilton County school officials had received several complaints about Walker’s dangerous driving and behavior and twice informed the company that operates the district’s buses.
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