ROCKPORT — The driver of a truck that slammed into Gloucester Public Schools Bus 54 on Tuesday morning is facing charges of following a school bus to closely, a marked lanes violation and driving on a suspended license.
Police said Thursday that they had sought criminal complaints against the driver, James McCormick, 23, of Peabody, who slammed into a school bus stopped at the Five Corners intersection.
The crash sent McCormick and the driver and a monitor on Bus 54 to local hospitals. The Police Department's incident report confirmed that there were no students on board the bus at the time. The bus was on its way to pick up a Gloucester schools special education student whose family had recently moved to Rockport.
According to police, an off-duty Gloucester police officer was driving behind McCormick's box truck just before he struck the bus. The Gloucester officer was the first to call 911, according to Rockport police Officer Daniel Mahoney's report.
According to the report, the witness said McCormick was weaving over the line before reaching Five Corners, and driving around 10 to 15 miles per hour over the 20 mph speed limit, following about "four feet" away from the bus.
Mahoney reported he has asked for McCormick's cell phone records after finding no other reason that McCormick could have been distracted.
McCormick was rushed to Beverly Hospital for injuries that included a possible broken leg, the police report indicates. The bus driver and monitor were released the day of the accident after being treated at Addison Gilbert Hospital in Gloucester.
The Rockport Public Works Department had to use a front-end loader to separate the truck from the rear of the school bus.
Steven Fletcher may be contacted at 1-978-283-7000 x3455, or sfletcher@gloucestertimes.com. Follow him on Twitter at @stevengdt.
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